Not only does this film stand tall on it's own achievements but it is also clearly the inspiration for that well loved classic "Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time". It follows the mythos of the original He-Man mini comics (the ones that came with the toys) more than the plot of the animated series, as such He-Man is not secretly Prince Adam. (My fellow post teenage virgins as well as losers in general will probably understand what I'm talking about.) Anyway Langela proves the perfect Skeletor. Unlike the cartoon character he proves to be convincingly pure evil. I must say that he honestly did succeed in being one of the most terrifying villains in movie history. Hat's off to director Gary Goddard and the cast for taking the story entirely seriously and not just dismissing it as a campy hour and a half long toy add. It's that kind of conviction that distinguishes between art and commercial shlock. This movie also taught me some valuable life lessons. For instance, if a guy with a skull head gets massive god-like power the only real change he will make to his life is giving himself golden armour. (Both Skeletor and the Red Skull have done this.) I also learned that when some one gets god-like power, to defeat them all you need to do is push them into a muddy ditch. Having the characters travel to late 1980's earth made this movie all the better specially since they got to meet Courteney Cox (what a babe. Grrrowwlll). Why doesn't anybody ever ask her about this movie when she's on talk shows? Oh wait it's cause there's no reason they should care. Anyway if you don't have anything better to do give it a rent... and wait till the end of the credits for the secret surprise. You can probably find it at your local Blockbuster Video! Make it a Blockbuster Night!
Review of Masters of the Universe
Masters of the Universe
(1987)
WITHOUT QUESTION THE GREATEST SWORD AND SORCERY EPIC EVER!!!
31 August 1999