It has been almost forty years since the last film adaptation of the character. He-Man returned once again to the big screen with "Masters of the Universe." A movie directed by Travis Knight, who with his creative vision revived an iconic eighties franchise. At the same time, he achieved what few directors can do these days: "please their audience" (the nostalgic fans).
I am not a fan of the TV series "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" but I was familiar with it since childhood. It was not from my era of cartoons, and I had the impression that it was a very outdated series. When I learned that a movie of the franchise was being produced, I had no interest, but that changed when I saw the first trailer. And I realized it is a much better adaptation than I expected.
The plot tells how Prince Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), after spending fifteen years living on Earth, recovers his magic sword and travels to his home planet Eternia along with his childhood friend, Teela (Camila Mendes). His main mission is to become the hero He-Man and free the planet from the tyranny of the evil Skeletor.
I would describe the story as an action journey with plenty of humor where everything revolves around hand-to-hand fights or chases involving laser gunfire.
It reminded me of the Guardians of the Galaxy saga and Star Wars, two of my favorite film franchises. This movie is set in a universe where fantastic magic and high-tech science fiction coexist in harmony without canceling each other out. It's like seeing in live-action the fantasy world we all dreamt of living in someday.
Unlike recent film adaptations that involve the existence of a real world (for example: a Minecraft movie), this one’s screen time for Earth is very short, which is appreciated. The first 20 minutes are like a summary of the first Thor movie (2011). However, once the real action starts in the dazzling landscapes of Eternia, it is fantastic.
Travis Knight opted for a light tone that embraces the original material very faithfully without becoming outdated, using humor I would say is directly inspired by the comedic style of Guardians of the Galaxy.
If I had to find faults with the film, I think it would be the use of CGI in several aspects of the aesthetics (and of course, when dealing with a world of magic and fantasy full of alien monsters and robots, it's expected to use this resource), but what I mean is that sometimes the excess of CGI was noticeable in action scenes. That made some sequences feel disconnected from the narrative.
As for the acting, I have to say this is the first time I know Nicholas Galitzine; I understand he has experience as a drama actor. In this movie, he delivers a surprising performance that adds dimensionality to the role of He-Man.
But who caught my attention was Jared Leto as Skeletor; he is physically unrecognizable, but he performed on set and gave voice to the character, bringing charisma as best he could, and that is admirable.
Alongside him, Idris Elba playing Man-At-Arms made me realize one thing: they are typecasting him as an action hero who uses firearms (something seen in "The Suicide Squad (2021)" by James Gunn when he played Bloodsport).
It is an exciting journey for fans of action and "epic" moments. I have yet to understand why it was a box office failure when critics applaud "Masters of the Universe": its global gross was $113.6 million, and it has been labeled disappointing due to its massive production budget. Perhaps it is the best movie of its genre this year. It is highly recommended.
Rating: 90/100
