MIJOO can easily be referred to as a rising star in the Korean variety show scene lately. But she is also a member of the female group LOVELYZ that debuted back in 2012 under Woolim Entertainment. Unfortunately, the group is currently on hiatus after the departure of all but one LOVELYZ member from Woolim Entertainment in 2021. Since then, many of the members have made their debut as solo artists under their new respective companies. MIJOO signed on with Antenna following her departure from Woolim Entertainment, and in May 2023, it was MIJOO turn to make her solo debut with the single Movie Star.

Movie Star is not spectacular, nor is it ground-breaking as a dance track. But it has its shining moments. I appreciate the track for its pleasant and easy-on-the-ears moments. They do hinder Movie Star in a way. The more pleasant moments (i.e., the verses and bridge) does make Movie Star feel like it is held back and the reversion back to pleasantness in the second verse does result in a loss of momentum that ultimately feels like a lost opportunity for Movie Star. On the flip side, these pleasant moments do highlight MIJOO’s airy and delicate vocals, which adds smoothness to the song. But if I had to preference one positive over the another, I would have picked momentum over vocals, simply because we still manage to hear MIJOO and her breathy vocals in latter parts of the song that were more upbeat. I did like the use of the percussive synths and xylophone-like metallic sounds in the song – both of which gave off a twinkling-like effect which goes well with the idea of a star. The guitar in the pre-chorus was also a nice touch. As the song gets to the choruses, Movie Star does pick up considerably and the momentum here was top-notch, exactly what the song needed. I like how it does embodies the idea of a dance track in a plain and simple way – no fuss, no frills. The replacement of the second half of the chorus during the chorus’ second run was a smart way of keeping the song dynamic and giving a unique structure to the song. Overall, MIJOO handles Movie Star quite well and it is a solid debut track altogether.

At the start of the music video, we see two cameos. The first is Lee Yi Kyung, who is usually playfully associated in the media as a potential romantic partner for MIJOO. We see him play a celebrity currently at a film or drama shoot and takes notice in MIJOO, who is an assistant in the production side of the shoot. The second cameo is by MIJOO’s fellow labelmate and senior, Lee Hyori, who dazzles on the red carpet just before the cameras unexpectedly switch over to MIJOO. The rest of the video shows MIJOO imagining herself to be a “movie star” (which matches the lyrics of the song). However, it is revealed at the end that she is, in fact, a movie star. So maybe we are looking at a Korean drama cliché here. I really liked all of MIJOO’s looks in the video – all very stunning. Even her casual part-timer worker look was pretty. My favourite part has to be the montage of all MIJOO’s looks in the video during the bridge. It was a nice, simple and seamless montage of the upper half of the choreography that just consolidated everything in the video in a matter of seconds.  

I enjoyed the smooth curves that the choreography has to offer in the choruses. They made the performance feel elegant and pretty. MIJOO handles the dance break wells, but I kind of wished it was stepped up a bit, just to fit the energy of the music a bit more neatly. Finally, I enjoyed the use of the flashlight on the mobile phones which individually looked like stars from afar. A pretty and smart touch to the choreography.

Song – 7.5/10
Music Video – 8/10
Performance – 8/10
Overall Rating – 7.8/10