This documentary is an honest, entertaining look into j-hope's preparations both for his first solo album, Jack in the Box, and his record-breaking performance at Lollapalooza. For this debut, he stepped away from the safety of concerts performed with his BTS team in front of members of the band's fanclub, instead choosing to headline the biggest alternative rock festival in the USA, a setting which - like j-hope's gritty hip-hop album itself - is a very long way from the glitzy, tightly controlled performances of kpop. The film hops backwards and forwards in time, showing just how meticulously he prepared for this project and how the creative aspects of the album and performance were absolutely his own.
We see j-hope working long hours alone in his studio - struggling with writer's block, dancing and ad-libbing along to his addictive hip-hop tracks and occasionally contemplating the fact that he could have chosen an easier life, were he not so driven by his need to create and perform. We see him taking a well-earned break with his family before launching back into the gargantuan task of organising his own promotions. He has a large and capable team around him, but he checks and adjusts every detail himself, from tasting the food and drink to be served at his launch party to making fine adjustments to the choreography, the band arrangements and the backing videos for his first stage performance. Along the way he talks frankly about his creative choices, the pressure he is under and his hopes and doubts.
The high quality footage of parts of the Lollapalooza performance is fantastic and you don't need to be a fan to feel the power and charisma of j-hope when he leaps onto the stage. Behind the scenes, he shows himself to to be driven, detail-oriented and remarkably clear about his own trajectory as an artist. There's no 'superstar' attitude, though - his gratitude to the whole team shines through, from the backing artists to the cleaners tidying up after his launch party. His exceptional talent as a rapper, dancer and singer is on full view, but j-hope's work ethic, honesty and humility may impress you the most.
