I remember first seeing Seventeen live in Melbourne back in 2016. Back then, they were still fresh on the K-Pop scene, but it was clear that they had something special.
Cut forward 7 years since their 2015 debut, Seventeen are one of the best K-Pop groups in the business, and they have their first movie on the big screen titled ‘Seventeen Power of Love: The Movie’, which is a love letter to their fans ‘CARATS’, created during a time where live performances have been scarce due to Covid.
The film consists of performances from their previous concerts including their online concert from November last year, and intimate interviews from the members displaying them discuss their past, their present, and their hopes for the future.
While Seventeen have many hits, not all of them can be performed in such a short period of time. However, catchy tunes such as ‘Clap’, ‘Left & Right’ and ‘Home’ thankfully do make an appearance. We also get to see the three units; Performance, Hip-Hop, and Vocal take the time to discuss their relationships with each other, as well the unit performances. My favourite performance would definitely be from the Vocal Team, consisting of a beautiful ballad titled ‘Imperfect Love’. Also admittedly, DK is my bias, so I guess my preferences are a bit, well, biased.
We also are shown footage of Seventeen winning their first chart show award, and the members generally bonding. While I am aware that many groups are strictly business in the K-Pop industry, it is clear that the members of Seventeen are really close and are more of a family.
The footage of an arena lit in blue with all the light sticks made me miss attending K-Pop concerts. Even if you’ve been to a concert before, but not a K-Pop concert, honestly, the experiences are incomparable. There’s nothing quite like it. Even the staging, the screens, the visuals, everything is next level when it comes to K-Pop.
Spanning for a decent run time of 1 hour and 55 minutes, ‘Seventeen Power of Love: The Movie’ provides a healthy balance between live music performances and interviews, with every moment completely enjoyable and wholesome. Whether you are already a fan of Seventeen, or if you’re just a fan of K-Pop and are curious to check out a K-Pop movie, ‘Seventeen Power of Love: The Movie’ is such an enjoyable experience. If you don’t have a bias already, you will by the end of the film.
Seeing ‘Seventeen Power of Love: The Movie’ surprisingly moved me to tears when the members were affectionately speaking about their fans. It only made me want to see Seventeen live again. I really hope they come back to my country someday. At present, K-Pop has yet to return to Australia since Covid struck. But now that things are getting back to normal, I hope that we see a K-Pop concert in Australia sooner than later.
In the interim, this film really did its job connecting the group to its fans after such a difficult time over the last two years. As a CARAT myself, I am so incredibly thankful and moved that ‘Seventeen Power of Love: The Movie’ has come into existence.