“Masters of the Universe” key art featuring Camila Mendes, Nicholas Galitzine and Idris Elba.
Amazon MGM Studios
Masters of the Universe, the new big-screen adaptation of He-Man’s story starring Nicholas Galitzine, Idris Elba and Camila Mendes, is getting a warm but not completely enthusiastic reception from Rotten Tomatoes critics.
Directed by Travis Knight (Bumblebee, Kubo and the Two Strings), Masters of the Universe plays in Thursday night previews before opening in theaters nationwide on Friday. He-Man, of course, is an iconic muscular action figure in Mattel’s Masters of the Universe toy line, which began in 1982. The popularity of the action figures spawned a multipronged franchise, including an animated series in 1983 (which led to several spinoffs and reboots), an animated movie in 1985 and a live-action feature film in 1987, as well as books, comics and video games.
Galitzine stars in the new Masters of the Universe film as Prince Adam/He-Man, who, as a young boy, flees his home planet of Eternia. He has no choice, really, as the evil wizard Skeletor (Jared Leto) attacks his father, King Randor (James Purefoy), and mother, Queen Marlena’s (Charlotte Riley), kingdom with the intention of seizing the Sword of Power for nefarious purposes.
In a last-ditch effort to protect her son and the all-powerful weapon, Queen Marlena sends Prince Adam through a mystical portal to Earth, but the boy is separated from the sword before he lands. After obsessing over locating the lost Sword of Power for 15 years, Adam locates it and transported back to Eternia, where his mother and father are imprisoned and the kingdom is in ruins under the power of Skeletor. Joining with his childhood friend, Teela (Mendes), and her father, the once-great Man-At-Arms Duncan (Elba), Prince Adam will need to use the sword to summon the Power of Grayskull confront the tyrant in a battle to take back Eternia.
The review embargo for Masters of the Universe was lifted Tuesday morning, and as of the publication of this article, the film has earned a 78% “fresh” critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer based on 36 reviews. The RT Critics’ Consensus, Audience Summary and Popcornmeter score based on verified user ratings is still pending.
Note: This article will be updated as more reviews are posted and the critics’ score changes.
What Are Individual Critics Saying About ‘Masters Of The Universe’?
Liz Shannon Miller of Consequence is among the top critics on RT who gives Masters of the Universe a “fresh” score, writing, “Given the choice between a silly take on this material and a grounded one, the silly version feels far preferable. If nothing else, the film is doing its best to have fun. The way playing with one’s toys should feel.”
Donald Clarke of the Irish Times also praises the movie, writing in his “fresh” take on RT, “Combining the small-screen cartoon’s brash aesthetics – the neon whoosh is sickeningly retro – with sharp, self-conscious wit, this Masters of the Universe dances gaily, to quote This Is Spinal Tap, on the ‘fine line between clever and stupid.’”
Clint Worthington of Roger Ebert.com also gives Masters of the Universe a “fresh” score on RT, but with some reservations, writing, “When it works, it proves a rollicking underdog space adventure. When it doesn’t, it feels like it’s ashamed of what it truly wants to be.”
William Bibbiani of The Wrap is among the top critics on RT who gives the film a “rotten” score, noting in his review summary, “Travis Knight’s Masters of the Universe is so blah, and so embarrassed of itself, that it could very well be the final nail in the coffin for 1980s nostalgia.”
Edward Douglas of the New York Daily News knocks the director specifically in his “rotten” RT review summary of Masters of the Universe, writing, “Travis Knight needs to stop playing with toy franchises and go back to being a serious filmmaker and animator.”
Another critic not feeling the Power of Grayskull is Frank Scheck of the Hollywood Reporter, who writes in his “rotten” RT review summary, “The film winds up feeling so much like one of those fringe festival musical theater parodies that you find yourself waiting for the characters to burst into song.”
Rated PG-13, Masters of the Universe plays in Thursday previews before opening in theaters nationwide on Friday.