Based on the Mattel toys and 1980s animated series, this current Masters of the Universe film is the second live-action adaptation of this material, following the 1987 version starring Dolph Lundgren as the ridiculously named He-Man. In this telling, Prince Adam (played as an adult by Nicholas Galitzine of Bottoms, Red White and Royal Blue, and The Sheep Detectives) spends his early years training on his home planet of Eternia, where magic and technology seem to co-exist peacefully. The center of power is Castle Grayskull, where Adam and his parents, the king and earth-born queen (James Purefoy and Charlotte Riley), live. Adam is small for his age and not especially adept at any form of combat, even though the king’s man-at-arm, Duncan (Idris Elba), is his personal trainer and his best friend Teela (also Duncan’s adoptive daughter, played by Camila Mendes) is one of the best in his class.
When Adam is 10 years ago, Eternia is invaded by the forces of Skeletor (voiced by Jared Leto), and Adam is forced to flee the planet with the help of the magical Sorceress (Morena Baccarin), the guardian of Castle Grayskull. He ends up on Earth, where he becomes Adam Green and grows up over the span of 15 years to become a human resources expert and quite gifted at non-violent conflict resolution. When he was sent to Earth, Adam was put in charge of the Power Sword that holds all of the power of his home world, so naturally he loses it almost immediately and spends the entire time he’s on Earth searching for it. When he does eventually find it, he’s uses it to get back to Eternia, where he hopes to restore peace. While growing up on Earth, Adam held onto his memories of home by drawing people from his past and giving them nicknames based on their abilities, like Mekaneck, Fisto, Trap Jaw, and Ram-Man—the originality of these names is laughable, but wisely, the film acknowledges that they were the creation of a young, unformed mind.
Once he’s back on Eternia, Adam discovers the real power inside of him and transforms into the super-strong He-Man, a name he doesn’t adopt until the very end of the film, thankfully. The back half of Masters of the Universe becomes an exercise in Adam rediscovering who he was and what it truly means to be the most powerful man in existence. Adam’s parents are still alive, and he does what he can to save them. There’s a robot (named Roboto) voiced by Kristen Wiig, a talking green tiger, and an evil sorceress working of Skeletor named Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie), who also poses as a mentor to younger Adam on Earth, although I’m not sure I could tell you why. The action sequences are chunky, loud, and more violent than I was expecting (a plus), and the colorful production design and costuming pop off the screen with a brilliance far more than that of established film franchises. The score from Daniel Pemberton offers up some solid guitar stabs from Queen’s Brian May, and keep an ear out for a well-known Queen song, perfectly placed.
Without too much winking about the elements of Masters of the Universe that feel dated or undeniably corny, director Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings, Bumblebee, and the upcoming Laika feature Wildwood) still finds ways to acknowledge that portions of the He-Man world are silly. I love the idea that most of the character names come from Adam as a child—it’s the only explanation I’ll accept or that makes sense.
And Galitzine gets more interesting with each new role. As Adam, he’s mostly successful at selling the character’s pain at being ripped from his home and family as a child, while still attempting to find out about abilities as He-Man and how they relate to legacy, inner confidence, and responsibility. Naturally, it wouldn’t be a tentpole movie with strong hints that more is to come (assuming this one makes some cash), and even I understood the tease in the mid-credits scene, despite having not grown up with these characters or shows in my life. I could tell from the crowd reaction around me that many of the references were landing with precision, and so, let the summer nostalgia parade begin.
The film is now playing in theaters.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider supporting Third Coast Review’s arts and culture coverage by making a donation. Choose the amount that works best for you, and know it goes directly to support our writers and contributors.
