Akuma to Love Song (2021): A Review
BIG BANG MADE: the Movie
VIP’s need no introduction, Korean drama & movie aficionados familiar with K-Pop most likely will not need one either. Outside the global K-sphere of influence, Big Bang is a popular K-Pop group consisting of G-Dragon, Taeyang, T.O.P., Daesung & Seungri. Under their belt they have hits such as Fantastic Baby, Lies, Haru Haru, Loser, Bang Bang Bang and If You amongst others whose MV’s can be watched on youtube. Big Bang’s MV’s however, do not provide the audience with a sense of their identity as artists, merely showcasing a representation of songs through role portraying in visual settings. The more original and iconic that their MV’s might be, they do not outline Big Bang, the modern contemporary artists that continue to take upon themselves to redefine K-Pop as a genre and music as a noun. Take Bae Bae MV, a hyperbolic parallel to Joana Vasconcelos ‘The Bride’ a tampon chandellier. Provocative and not suited to everyone’s taste, yet very few can be utterly indifferent to it.
Big Bang is not the norm and MADE, the movie demonstrates why. It’s wonderful to go to the market and buy oranges but shouldn’t the orange growing process be as important? If the soil had pesticides or natural fertilizers, that might affect the quality of the oranges and consequently the taste. MADE is the process and as such fundamental to the full enjoyment of Big Bang’s work as artists.
MADE is not an introduction to Big Bang's work therefore while a phenomenal experience for VIP's, perhaps an interesting experience to K-Pop fans, to mainstream music enthusiasts it might be just another music documentary. Yet MADE will never be just another music documentary like GD will never be just another ‘boyband’ leader, Taeyang just another main dancer or T.O.P just another lead rapper. MADE is the movie documentary, GD is Big Bang’s leader, Taeyang is the main dancer and T.O.P. is the lead rapper; the not just.
For VIP’s the film documentary will deepen their knowledge about Big Bang; for everyone else MADE is an opportunity to gain and develop a breadth of knowledge about the artists, contributing to a wider understanding of the broadly acclaimed K-Pop group who has won multiple accolades worldwide.
MADE, the movie can be described as contemporary blend of a Saatchi and Saatchi advertising campaign with Enid Blyton the Famous Five and The Financial Times news article feature dynamics and style focused on Big Bang rather than the state of the economy and business world. For a while one is reminded of the vibrant energy incredibly characteristic of Friends minus Monica, Pheobe and Rachel but not quite as Big Bang are so much more than Ross, Chandler and Joey, reminiscing on Savage Garden’s Affirmation MV, the behind the scenes histrionics antonym, the unique vibe that defines Big Bang more than definition as a word.
What is interesting about MADE: the movie is the privilege of seeing the artists as they want to be seen not mouth watered over. After all they’re not fruit. The movie does not focus on GD, the composer, lyricist fashionista; Taeyang, the most often than not half-naked man with great abs; T.O.P. the Frank Gehry Willy Wonka meets Dances with Wolves Two socks; the quiet noisy break all the dishes when he wants to Daesung; or the funny curiously extroverted I might be the youngest but I’m good Seungri. The documentary piece focuses on the group’s world tour depicting MADE behind-the-scenes, revealing offstage and backstage footage and presenting fans with individual interviews with each Big Bang member.
MADE gives VIP's something more to talk about; something more to discuss while it provides the mainstream music audience with a new conversation topic and something new to share with their friends offline and online. At the same time, MADE offers a unique introduction to the world of Big Bang and a valuable insight about the group that otherwise music fans in general would have limited exposure to. The film is also educational and a learning experience about what Big Bang members do when they’re relaxed, when they prep for a concert, how they joke with one another and get to enjoy listening to good self-composed music. T.O.P.'s antics on screen were smiled upon, yet Taeyang’s sense of humour was missed. It’s almost as if he prefers to be seen as a male version of the Mona Lisa rather than the talented Leonardo Da Vinci, while GD and T.O.P. strive on the different sides of the artist with GD going more Alexander McQueen and T.O.P. going more Picasso, all of which Leonardo Da Vinci polymath.
Overall, MADE, the movie is an excellent fan service to VIP’s worldwide and an opportunity to mainstream music audiences to learn about five talented artists, five talented entertainers, GD, Taeyang, T.O.P., Daesung & Seungri... Big Bang and to see the artists behind the artists.
