Since they debuted in 2016, BLACKPINK have been a record-breaking, bar-setting giant of K-pop. Their Born Pink world tour was no different. Over the course of 11 months between October 2022 and September 2023, the girl group took over 34 cities with 66 concerts, filling arenas and stadiums, and topping the bill at festivals. They became the first K-pop act to headline Coachella and a major UK festival at BST Hyde Park, and smashed attendance figures for the scene’s girl groups worldwide.
Since the tour wrapped in Seoul last September, things have been quiet on the group front, with the members moving forward in their individual solo chapters. But, as the eighth anniversary of their debut approaches, they’re taking the opportunity to look back and revisit their second world tour in the form of a new concert film.
Given the achievements and statistics around that tour, BLACKPINK World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas could easily take an overly flashy, pizzazz-filled approach to capturing the shows. Instead, it opts for a more traditional route, documenting the performance faithfully and largely steering clear of any additional flourishes.
Filmed on the very last day of the tour at Seoul’s Gocheok Sky Dome, it attempts to encapsulate the energy and electricity of the group’s live show. It’s a pure aim that works – for the most part. The film opens with the roars of the crowd and drone shots of some of the huge audiences BLACKPINK performed in front of, while performances of the likes of ‘Kill This Love’ and ‘Pretty Savage’ sizzle almost as hard as they do in person. The four members’ solo stages highlight their distinct personalities and spotlight their individual tastes. There’s no diluting, either, of rapper Lisa’s magnetic stage presence, who is as compelling on screen as when you’re watching her in a venue.
But there are times when things fall flat. Interaction and chemistry between the four women, and the group and the crowd, is kept to a minimum, while there are points where the fans’ cheers feel too distant and muted. It’s near impossible for a concert film to fully distill the atmosphere of a physical live show, of course, but there are times when the atmosphere is almost non-existent.
The movie’s main method of adding some flash to proceedings is revealed right at the start. During opening song ‘Pink Venom’, it splices together footage of the track from shows around the world, seamlessly shifting from one city to the next, the only evidence it’s from a new location found in the outfits worn by BLACKPINK. It’s a neat trick that showcases the group’s synchronicity but, by the third time its doled out during ‘Boombayah’, it’s shine has already started to wear off.