Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain (2022) Movie Review – Fans should love this mockumentary

One for the fans

Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain (2022) is a fun and vibrant little mockumentary, one that pools the comedic talents of four women together as they set out to try and brainstorm material for a new Netflix comedy special.

It’s a pretty straight forward premise, and one that plays on all the hallmarks of Korean comedy, with the talents of Celeb Five along for the ride. Anyone who has watched Behind the Scenes footage or goofs from K-dramas or K-pop stars will immediately warm to the style offered here, with a lot of silly jokes; some will resonate with this material, other’s won’t.

Playing themselves, the show brings together the talent of Kim Shin-Young, Song Eun-Yi, Shin Bong-Sun and Ahm Young-Mi. For those aware of this girl group, Celeb Five lost their fifth member, Kim Young-hee, who department in late 2018 – hence why it’s more like Celeb Four than Celeb Five.

So the four members left, work together across this 55 minute mockumentary to come up with ideas for a show stopping performance.

A lot of the material here centers on the gang as they cycle through their calendar (courtesy of a little animation) as they brainstorm ideas, try to make it big internationally while also riffing on Korean comedy, men and what the future may hold.

Along the way, there’s a good deal of improv skits, including plenty of giggling and laughing for company too. If I’m being super harsh, some of the skits here feel staged and don’t quite work, including some of the more crude jokes. At one point we get a video call gone wrong, with one of the girls  standing up while naked inside a bathtub. (It’s all blurred out, don’t worry!)

There are also numerous questionable references to 365 Days too, the dreadful erotica movie that somehow surfaces in several conversations across the run-time. Eventually though all these jokes and improv sequences lead to the girls backstage preparing to do their show on stage.

Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain is ultimately a film for the fans. Those who have followed Celeb Five since their inception back in the 1980’s will love what the girls come up with, and revel in their banter across the run-time. There’s definitely some solid laughs in here, and those familiar with the culture and know who Celeb Five are will likely get the most out of this.


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  • Verdict - 7/10
    7/10
7/10

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