‘Masters of the Universe’ is a Bowl of Sugary Spectacle
Masters of the Universe is an adaptation that could only be made in 2026. In a different Hollywood system, the movie would be ripe for marketing towards the “meathead” action-based market. The first attempt with Dolph Lundgren, for example, was clearly a product of the old thinking. That somehow, macho, masculine behavior, and fantasy are box office-winning formulas. Filmmaker Travis Knight’s adaptation has no interest in discussing “tough guys.” In fact, his take on Adam is gullible, overly sweet, and sometimes endearingly pathetic.
The new film owes a lot to James Gunn and his vision of Guardians of the Galaxy. There is so much here that would not work if Gunn’s direction of a cosmic group of defenders didn’t succeed in execution. But Knight injects many fresh themes, including empathy vs. violence, as well as his own brand of humor that leans intentionally into the awkward side of comedy.
The new adaptation has a plethora of writers, including Kubo and the Two Strings writer, Chris Butler. Additional writers are Aaron Nee and Adam Nee of The Lost City and Dave Callaham of Shang-Chi.
What is Masters of the Universe about?
The film itself centers on the iconic character of Adam (Nicholas Galitzine), the prince of the magical realm of Eternia. The themes are made evident from the start. Adam is being trained by Duncan (Idris Elba), and instead of taking the instruction seriously, he goofs off with his friend Teela. His father, King Randor (James Purefoy), oversees his behavior and decides to attack his child with a real sword rather than a fake one. The King does so to remind him that weakness is not an option. And it leaves Adam feeling more insecure than confident.
Before he can prove himself worthy, Eternia is attacked by the vicious army of Skeletor (Jared Leto). It’s in this first battle that Knight’s artistic background serves him well. The audience can feel the storyboarding in each frame as the action is perfectly canvassed on the screen.
For example, one of the first set pieces features a confrontation between Duncan and Trap Jaw (Sam C. Wilson). The fight coverage is loose enough for the viewer to indulge in the action. The editing allows for stylish cuts to the character’s weaponry, such as the mechanical attachments featured on Trap Jaw, which operates like a Swiss Army knife of artillery.
The resulting battle leaves Eternia in ruins, and the Sorceress (Morena Baccarin) bends reality to send Adam and the Sword of Power into another dimension. While gliding through the dimensional wormhole, Adam loses the sword, the only key to getting back home. The script then cuts to 15 years later, where a grown-up Adam is still rambling to women he dates and his roommate about the Sword of Power and the wonders of Eternia.
The movie hand waves away the question of how Adam survived for 15 years as a stranger on Earth, but audiences will not care. The movie leans into fish-out-of-water comedy, showing how completely baffled everyone is by Adam’s sincerity about his home.
Some of the execution here feels akin to the first Thor film, where Chris Hemsworth maintained the exaggerated “Mighty” persona in a world of less-than-animated Earthlings. The key difference is that Thor would adapt after behaving barbarically. Besides assimilating into an office job, Adam wears his obsession with Eternia like a uniform.
The casting of Nicholas Galitzine is Masters of the Universe’s greatest asset. He portrays Adam with a lovable innocence that brings unexpected charm. In a sense, Galitzine approaches Adam as Tom Hanks did in the movie Big. Sure, he’s a big, athletically fit man, but Adam is the same lost little boy inside. Almost every scene in the first half of the film shows Adam trying to find the bravery his father wanted him to possess. Once he understands the sword’s power, his abilities give Adam the courage to face his enemies.
Travis Knight’s empathetic He-Man
For a moment, it seemed that Masters of the Universe was offering a supportive take on male aggression. Thankfully, the opposite is true. Once Adam finds his way back to Eternia, thanks to an older Teela (Camila Mendes), he is confronted with the moral complexities of possessing magnificent strength. And while the discussion of empathy vs. violence does not land perfectly, I appreciate the movie’s willingness to have the discussion at all.
The imperfections stem from the contradictory character choices. For instance, Adam’s moral code is that he would rather talk it out than handle things physically. But the only way anything ever gets resolved is if he handles things physically. It’s similar to the Batman Begins contradiction, when Bruce Wayne tells Ra’s Al Ghul, “I won’t kill you, but I don’t have to save you.”
Knight’s movie has a breezy energy that keeps the audience invested. That said, the film does lag toward the middle after Adam gains his Grayskull powers. It slows down for small character moments that recontextualize how Adam was raised, such as a cathartic reflection between adult Adam and his father about why his father was tough on him as a child.
The new Masters of the Universe movie adaptation is a bowl of sugary cereal
Most of the film’s goofball charm strongly borrows from Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s flowing with cosmic colors; the main character behaves like a boy child; there’s a talking animal (Battle Cat); and even Teela has Gamora’s presence and outfit. Knight incorporates this inspiration and tailors it to his own use. But the similarities are quite obvious.
The humor will not work for everyone because it leans into cringe-comedy bits. Personally, the jokes work for me because I’m a fan of dad jokes. The type of silliness that makes one want to smash their palm through their face. For instance, characters would make a quip and pause for the laughter to come, and every so often it did not. It’s the same awkward feeling viewers had watching Michael Scott from The Office.
Overall, because of the unseriousness, I quite liked Masters of the Universe for its innocence and carefree charm. It’s not a perfect movie by any means, and it may borrow heavily from better movies. But it’s difficult to find fault in a movie that has the capacity to be shamelessly silly with its characters and action. If any adaptation was going to pull influence from Gunn, it’s fitting that it would be Masters of the Universe.
The tone and spectacle feel like a Saturday morning cartoon. It has the old, familiar flavor of sitting down, pouring yourself a bowl of sugary Count Chocula, and letting the absurdity of a Saturday morning cartoon absorb you. What more could you ask for from this adaptation?
Also check out: Mortal Kombat II Review: A Sequel That Hits Hard and Ages Harder
