BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young is a solid addition to the growing canon of documentaries about fandom. A standard, but insightful look at the fanbase supporting world renowned Korean pop superstars, BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young looks at the ways everyday admirers of artists can bolster and prop up their idols – and even each other – through various high and low points. Nothing in the film will necessarily come as a shock to anyone who has ever felt strongly about anything in pop culture, but as a testament to the BTS ARMY itself it offers a good deal of insight and warmth.
BTS – which stands for Bangtan Sonyeondan (meaning Bulletproof Boy Scouts, in English) – began establishing themselves as an act in the early to mid 2010s by documenting themselves and their attempts to stand out amid the notoriously crowded and competitive world of South Korean pop idols. Many members of the ARMY – an acronym that stands for Adorable Representative MC for Youth – have been around since the group’s inception, propping up Jin, RM, Jimin, Suga, J-Hope, V, and Jung Kook as underdogs. Success didn’t come out of the gate for BTS, with the band struggling to chart even in Korea, but as time went on, ARMY members helped propel them to new heights around the world, making them the most globally recognized and identifiable K-Pop group of the era.
Directed by Grace Lee and Dr. Patty Ahn (a scholar, interview subject, and fan in their own right), BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young doesn’t have any insight from the group’s members outside of some archival footage from all of their various eras, and the film itself exists in a strange space between being simultaneously authorized and unauthorized (not to mention that the documentary was in production while each of them was serving their mandatory military service). Instead, the film focuses on the fan’s perspective on the group’s successes, struggles, and fame. Like most things outsiders don’t understand or couldn’t care less about at a passing glance, it would be easy for the unfamiliar to dismiss BTS as just another pop act, but looking at such a musical juggernaut from the viewpoint of its fans can make a fascinating shift in perspective when properly framed by a filmmaker, and that’s precisely what Lee and Ahn do with BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young.
Lee and Ahn offer up an expected, requisite number of stories from fans who make various musings about how the music of BTS impacted their lives, many of which speak to how the group was “there when I needed them the most.” A young woman in Mexico talks about how the group helped her navigate her parents’ divorce. A Muslim woman originally from Indonesia explains how BTS made her feel seen as she embarked on a new life in the United States. A legion of Korean-English translators help to illustrate both the specifically Korean cultural context of some of BTS songs, while highlighting a lot of equally universal themes and sentiments. BTS Reactors watch and analyze any and all footage of the band and share their findings and opinions across social media and YouTube. All of this isn’t anything new for a documentary about fans from any background, but BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young is respectful, earnest, and knowledgeable about the subject at hand, which makes it a good entry point for anyone still trying to understand the power these people wield.
Sure, everyone mentions their “bias” or crushes at some point, but all of the interview subjects in BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young are willing to speak candidly about what it means to be a part of one of the world’s biggest and most influential fandoms. When it looked like the band was on the verge of breaking up around 2018 after intense contract negotiations and some obvious signs of burnout, ARMY was there to help carry BTS a bit further, with some of Lee’s interview subjects questioning if they pushed the guys too hard, too fast. There’s an open discussion of how BTS is a polished, easily accessible representation of South Korean culture, but one that can help those outside the country understand some of the unique challenges and struggles of those living on the peninsula. Just like any huge fandom, there’s bound to be some latent toxicity and defensiveness that forces people to choose their words carefully, but also a profound sense of togetherness that makes them politically and socially formidable (especially during the onset of the current Black Lives Matter movement and hilariously tanking a Donald Trump political rally). And in the latter stages of the film, ARMY members and the filmmaker examine the existential question of what a fandom means at a time when the group being adored is forced to temporarily disband. Who are these fans without the group they’ve built this collective identity around?
When BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young is focusing on people making friends, learning dance choreography, and generally enjoying the music, the film is fine enough, but whenever Lee asks her subjects to speak more introspectively, things come into sharper focus. At some point, the members of BTS will have a hell of a story to tell in their own right, but this isn’t the time and this isn’t technically their narrative. BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young is one for the fans, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but it also fosters a sense of understanding for those who’ve never heard a single song and only know the group from reputation.
BTS ARMY: Forever We Are Young opens in theatres everywhere on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
