I’d be surprised if you’ve found yourself here without knowing what this movie is about, but if not here is a little intro:
Masters of the Universe tells the story of the prince of Eternia, who after spending fifteen years on earth, returns to his home planet with the help of the Sword of Power to reclaim his legacy and defeat Skeletor alongside his man at arms, Man-at-Arms, and his childhood friend Teela.
As someone whose introduction to He-Man and Masters of the Universe came as an adult, I went into the film without any youthful nostalgia adding a warm haze and yet watching it made me feel like a kid again. I LOVED it. I fear that it has started a Masters of the Universe obsession in my hyperfixation-raddled brain and I want to tell you why.
I’m a certified Jared Leto hater yet Skeletor was one of my favourite parts of the movie. Yet I wonder, since it is such a departure from what he usually sounds like, why they cast him at all and not literally anyone else without a horrible reputation. If you didn’t know Jared Leto played the role, you never would have guessed. Though, there were points in the movie where he was a little hard to understand and I felt myself longing for subtitles.
Nicholas Galitzine (Prince Adam) gave an incredible lead performance, with great comedic timing and a whole lot of heart. Even my boyfriend, an utterly anhedonic person, thought he was great and talked about how excited he is to see where his career takes him. I really believed him, from bored sword obsessed HR worker to loin-cloth clad beefcake - he hit the emotional beats effortlessly.
Camila Mendes, Idris Elba and Kristen Wiig were great additions too, with Wiig’s Roboto providing some hilarious moments and Elba and Mendes adding so much heart. The effortless way that humour and vulnerability were woven together by the entire cast was truly beautiful. I felt that Alison Brie’s Evil-Lyn was underutilised, though she had some great moments and got to make use of her comedic chops.
The supporting cast was great - I’ve never seen a performance from Sasheer Zamata that I didn’t love - including Morena Baccarin, John Xue Zhang, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson and Adam’s romance-loving roommate Christian Vunipola.
It was a lot more fun than I was expecting - after decades of superhero movies taking themselves too seriously with an emphasis on darkness and grit, it was wonderful to watch a hero movie that was just fun. Not every villain needs an origin story, not every hero needs to forget who they are. It felt self-referential while still taking pride in the characters and the story, unpretentious yet earnest.
It is packed FULL of fan service - though I won’t spoil it for you here - and the crowd at my preview screening was going wild (I will tell you however, to make sure you stay for the whole credits!)
Whether you're an OG fan or unfamiliar with the material, it is just a bundle of pure fun for anyone.
