On Aug. 7, 1987, Masters of the Universe hit the big screen for the first time, with Dolph Lundgren and Frank Langella headlining the adaptation of the Mattel toy line. The film sputtered in release, ultimately grossing $17.3 million globally. The Hollywood Reporter’s original review is below.
Take the theme music and galactic goofiness of Star Wars, add the sword-and-sorcery derring-do from Conan, mix them both in a low-speed Waring blender and you’ll probably get something like Masters of the Universe.
This new Cannon offering, filled with chintzy special effects, a ludicrous story line and campy performances, will likely bore adults but have the kiddies clamoring for more.
Masters features blond hunk Dolph Lundgren as the mighty He-Man, a muscle-bound warrior who defends the people of the planet Eternia against the evil Skeletor, played by Frank Langella in pasty-looking skull makeup.
Of course, by the end of the film good triumphs over evil, but as far as the acting victory is concerned, there’s no contest. While Langella struts around his castle delivering deliriously overblown dialogue, Lundgren displays about as much emotion as the plastic toy action figures the movie is based on.
The plot, as such, revolves around the quest for a magic “cosmic key” that can open any door, including the passageway of time and space. He-Man wants the key so he can release the Sorceress of Greyskull, who’s being held captive by Skeletor. And Skeletor wants it so he can — what else? — rule the universe.
After a short setup on Eternia, He-Man and his buddies escape the wrath of Skeletor by using the key to visit Earth. Meanwhile, Skeletor sends a quartet of vicious mercenaries (including an ugly Chewbacca clone) after them.
Along the way, the key gets lost and winds up in the hands of a high school rock musician (Robert Duncan McNeil) and his girlfriend (Courteney Cox) who think it’s a new Japanese synthesizer. Both wholesome kids get caught in the crossfire when He-Man battles Skeletor’s army of Darth Vader lookalikes in — where else? — a used music store in the suburbs.
After the zapfest on Earth, the anti-climactic tussle between the forces of good and evil occurs back on Eternia, where He-Man and his nemesis cross swords in a clumsy fight that’s not only predictable but also photographed and edited poorly.
There are lots of action and laser fights throughout Masters, but very little fun, with most humor coming from Billy Barty, as a dwarf inventor patterned after Star Wars‘ Yoda. Actress Meg Foster, as Skeletor’s henchwoman Evil-Lyn, is utterly wasted, as is lovely Chelsea Field, who portrays He-Man’s main squeeze Teela. No doubt She-Ra is waiting for the early grosses before committing to a sequel. — Jeffrey Ressner, originally published on Aug. 11, 1987.
Everett Collection
Credit: Source link