Blackpink: Light Up the Sky

This compelling documentary pulls back the curtain on the wildly successful Korean musical group as well as the system that manufactures polished K-pop bands. Because they are contrived as such a perfected and professional package, you can't help but assume Blackpink: Light Up the Sky has a stamp of approval for the brand. Still, it's fascinating to learn about the process and hear the band members reveal the emotional and sometimes physical toll a decade of training and work has taken on them. The young women seem to have few friends or hobbies, much less time, outside their foursome. One questions how she's supposed to be a role model to her fans, another is already thinking about when Blackpink will be replaced by a younger group. They're still learning how to actually have fun on stage.

Director Caroline Suh skillfully blends news and concert clips with individual and group interviews and older photos and clips. Fortunately for her, theirs is a well-documented generation. We get to hear and see some of the girls' experiences in the training school, a grueling factory with 14-hour workdays and monthly "elimination" performances. The girls recall the school as not having a "very happy vibe," and the parents of one encouraged her to drop out and "come home." The fact that none did is remarkable. Curiously, like the product of the group themselves, we don't see any of the faces of the "CEO" or others involved in the training school, those engineers pulling the actual strings. Interviews with two producers/songwriters don't bring a lot to the table. All told, the documentary leaves you hoping for the best for these young women, especially off stage.