After the success of Barbie in 2023, it was only a matter of time before toy maker Mattel began capitalizing on its other major intellectual properties. Now, three years later, the brand’s iconic long-time “boy toy” IP gets a chance to shine with Masters of the Universe and the results are a mixed toy box.
Masters of the Universe stars Nicholas Galitzine as Adam/He-Man, a displaced hero figure (pun fully intended) who grew up primarily on Earth after Skeletor (Jared Leto) attacked his native Eternia when he was a child, and young Adam (Artie Wilkinson-Hunt) was charged with escaping through a magic portal created by the Sorceress (Morena Baccarin) with the Sword of Power to survive the attack and one day find his way home. Unfortunately, Adam loses the sword in transit and spends the next 15 years of his life looking for it, while working a 9-to-5 job and trying to maintain a “normal” life.
He ultimately finds the sword in a comic shop and steals it, which triggers the action to come. Adam is ultimately arrested for the theft and while being transported to jail, the police car is attacked by Beast-Man on a busy Oklahoma City freeway. Adam is saved by his childhood friend Teela (Camila Mendes) who collects the prince of Eternia and the Power Sword and brings them both home.
Once back on Eternia, Adam reconnects with his kingdom’s greatest champions, now imprisoned by Skeletor, and along with his father’s man-at-arms, Duncan (Idris Elba), Adam unlocks the power of the sword (C’mon, you know the words) and becomes He-Man in time to rally the forces of good to free Eternia from Skeletor, Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie) and their rogues gallery of bad guys.
The performances by the leads shine, with Galitzine embodying Adam/He-Man perfectly, and Leto’s Skeletor and Brie’s Evil-Lyn devouring scenery like it’s made from wagyu beef. The various heroes all get their time to shine, however other than the Beast-Man attack in OKC and a side-plot involving Trap-Jaw (Sam C. Wilson), the rest of the villains are essentially throw-away fodder for He-Man to rough up to the delight of the audience.
Director Travis Knight (Bumblebee, Kubo and the Two Strings) is the perfect person to helm Masters of the Universe. His one take on Hasbro’s cinematic Transformers universe was without a doubt the best live-action Transformers film, and his animated work as CEO of Laika Studios is without peer. Knight understands these 1980’s toy-based IPs as a fan himself, who grew up with the toys and cartoons and comics, and he brings that sensibility to each project. With MOTU, he opts to both present a true-to-the-subject-matter story while also poking fun at some of the more ludicrous aspects of the toyline’s mythos.
The screenplay by Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, and David Callaham, based off a screen story by Nee, Nee, Alex Litvak and Michael Finch, stays true to the core of the classic Filmation cartoon mythos, but also takes some fun liberties, including how some of these characters get their spot-on names, based on whatever action they may perform. Their names come from 10-year-old Adam remembering the stories and adventures on his home planet while growing up on Earth, and this is how the guy with a giant fist (Johannes Johannesson) gets the name “Fisto,” and the guy who rams things with his bullet shaped armor (Jon Zhang) gets the name “Ram Man.” It’s silly but it works. This is also how Adam becomes known as “He-Man.”
Where Masters of the Universe stumbles is in its tone and structure. The plot, while mostly straightforward, has many holes that are never really resolved and some of the attempts to appeal to adults (any joke about Fisto “fisting” people and Skeletor describing the “sword” between Adam’s legs) are a little jarring. This is primarily due to the project having spent so long in development hell with so many cooks coming in and out of the kitchen during the process. Now that this film has established itself and the rules of this universe, any subsequent films in the series will be better off with one or two screenwriters and a more unified story.
Masters of the Universe wears the fact that it is based on a 1980s toy property on its sleeve, as the soundtrack harkens back to the glorious hair metal of that decade, even employing legendary Queen guitarist Sir Brian May to help write songs for the film. Queen itself is featured during a pivotal scene, all but solidifying its place in the same pool of campy sci-fi adventure movies now occupied by Flash Gordon and Highlander, among others. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as those films are fun and beloved — decades after they hit theaters.
Masters of the Universe, for good or bad, will suffer that same fate. It’s funny, loud, boisterous and at times head-scratchingly ridiculous, and that is fine for a film based off a toy line. Once streaming on Amazon Prime, it may become a bigger hit than anyone could have imagined and a new generation of fans will be introduced to these characters, keeping the fires of Eternia burning for decades to come.
Masters of the Universe is rated PG-13 and is in theaters now.
