The Debilitating Nuances of Exploring Masculinity (Masters Of The Universe review)

In a heap of nostalgia that comes into play when going to theaters these days, Masters of the Universe leans into it the most as it tries to bring the power of He-Man back to the silver screen (once again) with a bigger budget and up-and-coming actors. This will be Amazon MGM's next attempt at creating a hit in the multiplex after what Project Hail Mary ended up becoming, this time partnering with Mattel to create yet another adaptation of the famous toy line/80's cartoon. 

The movie centers on the lost Prince Adam, stranded on Earth, as he tries to find his way back to Eternia to fulfill his destiny, save his parents, and defeat the maniacal Skeletor. In finding the Sword of Grayskull, he has to embrace his power while also convincing the people, whether in Eternia or on Earth, that he is the lost prince and has a destiny for more in an '80s-inspired fantasy realm than his forced life in a cubicle

   

Masters Of The Universe very much tries to be Barbie for men, but that does diminish the journey Ryan Gosling's Ken goes through in that plot. But I digress, as this He-Man adaptation, however, has a message on masculinity and the meaning of being a man, especially in Nicholas Galitzine's performance as Prince Adam/He-Man's character, proving to his father that he could be the strong individual he wanted him to be, proving his fighting skills to Idris Elba's Man-At-Arms, and regaining his own identity and self-worth. There is a trait that Adam personifies here, encouraging men to consider fighting and violence only as a last resort, adopting a need to want to handle the situation by 'talking it out' first. Although this sentiment felt interesting to explore, the script does not explore it well enough to be effective or to pay off by the end. 

Other problems with the script were that there was this heavy reliance on comedy, which would be something you would expect from an adaptation like this, but none of it seemed to land. There are moments that feel like they could, but much of the silliness comes off as unnecessary. If the writers had taken a more serious approach to the dialogue and to their line deliveries, instead of egging for laughs that can only solidify that illusion if there were a laugh track in the background, maybe there would be a redeeming factor. 

There was also this weird reliance on sexual humor that does seem off, considering how this movie may want to introduce the characters to a younger audience. What also seemed cringey was that much of this humor had a homoerotic quality. Maybe it could reference Galitzine's previous acting roles, mostly involving queer characters. OR the writers wanted to somehow pay homage to the LGBTQ+ community's impact on the franchise. The homage may even come off as ridicule, and I don't know how that will be received. In my opinion, this was not the best way to do it, as I mentioned above. It comes off more distasteful, which drives the SWORD further after comprehending the lackluster nuance towards degrees of masculinity. 

I do think Travis Knight was inspired by James Gunn when approaching the tone and the action. The juggling of serious and humorous elements may not have been well-balanced, but the fast-paced action does make the movie more enjoyable to watch. The flips and jumps can be a bit much alongside the heavy VFX, but the action really sells when the characters go through hand-to-hand combat. There were several parts of the film that were practical, and those aspects probably made Eternia pop, alongside the source material's accurate costume choices and Daniel Pemberton's score that manages to blend 80's synth rock in a sci-fi fantasy way. 

I do think that this wasn't Galitzine's best role. There were character choices made here, based purely on what he was working with in the script, that pulled his performance down. He does look the part and tries to explore the character's nuances in the most modern way possible, even if it comes off as cringier than expected. I am very sad to say that Camila Mendez's Teela is more wooden than expected. She was personally one of the better actors from the unhinged Riverdale TV show, but I think that with time, she could make her motivation towards creating a better, tangible Warrior Goddess, past her already great fight choreography, is to lean further into the badass I know she can play with in the character, based on what she did with Veronica.  

Despite not giving Jared Leto as Skeletor much attention, he does have his moments in the film. When he does, with his maniacal, toxic-masculinity side and larger-than-life voice, Skeletor makes this muddled movie enjoyable. I can say the same for Elba, who leans into the debilitating fear of failure, and after spending years wallowing in it, what it means from a perspective that men take it very seriously when their main purpose in life is not only challenged but taken away from them. 

There are several parts of Masters Of The Universe that clarify the character arc for an audience, whether lifelong or new fans, something worth discussing, embedded within the very good world-building and action sequences. There were risks taken, but it did seem like it was thrown out the window at the last minute to please, mostly, middle-aged straight men who might have thought it would suffer the undeserved woke conversation that Barbie brought about. What's ironic is that these choices don't seem to be working in that demographic's favor either. The film seems to be made for a specific audience in mind, without ignoring the others, but rather decides to cheapen the parts that could be appreciated by everyone.