'Masters of the Universe' Review: He-Man Film Offers Charming, Derivative Take on Toy Franchise
By
David Ehrlich
Baker's choice. Dense with flavour, light on filler.
Summary
A review of Travis Knight's "Masters of the Universe" film, which is based on the He-Man toy franchise created by Mattel. The review discusses how the film gives He-Man the "Barbie treatment" — a self-aware, semi-charming take on the generic 'sword and planet' franchise. Starring Nicholas Galitzine as a swole himbo, the movie emphasizes that having a big heart matters more than big muscles, offering a derivative but entertaining spin on the classic toy-inspired property.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledUnlike a lot of the other nerd shit that has blessed and plagued our screens for the last 20 years or so, Travis Knight's semi-charmingly derivative 'Masters of the Universe' stands out because it's based on a toy that was created to sell fantasy rather than the other way around.
Desperate to catch up with the rest of its industry after missing out on 'Star Wars,' Mattel conceived of He-Man as a chance to cover all the remaining bases at once — a deliberately generic 'sword and planet' franchise that had the power to combine sorcery with sci-fi and anything else that might sell to pre-teen boy
Nicholas Galitzine is a swole himbo in a movie about how having a big heart is more important than having big muscles.
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