Masters of the Universe (2026) | REVIEW

The villain ‘Skeletor’ (Jared Leto) in Travis Knight’s MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE — PHOTO: Amazon MGM Studios & Sony Pictures Releasing International (Still image from trailers).

Directed by Travis Knight — Screenplay by Chris Butler, Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, and David Callaham.

I can’t say that I have much of a prior relationship with the 1980s Mattel toy line or the animated series that were built around it (or, for that matter, a big relationship with the 1987 live-action film adaptation). In fact, even though I’m pretty sure I saw the Dolph Lundgren film when I was young, I mostly know the characters from my father, who, still to this day, quotes Frank Langella’s Skeletor from time to time. Still, I was curious to see what a new film adaptation of the story could be like, especially given the years of development hell it went through. Well, Travis Knight’s Masters of the Universe was recently released on Amazon Prime Video, so I finally got to see the film just the other day. Having now seen it, I will say that I mostly enjoyed the Bumblebee-director’s attempt at giving new life to He-Man and the many characters, but I don’t think this is a complete home run.

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REVIEW: Palm Springs (2020)

Andy Samberg as Nyles (left) and Cristin Milioti as Sarah (right) in Palm Springs. — Photo: Hulu.

Directed by Max Barbakow — Screenplay by Andy Siara.

I am a sucker for time loop movies, and, like most people, I have been a huge fan of these films since I saw Harold Ramis’ Groundhog Day as a kid and fell in love with the concept and the film. Although I had seen him in the original Ghostbusters film prior to my first viewing of Groundhog Day, his quintessential time loop classic from 1993 was actually the film that made me a true fan of Bill Murray.

Similarly, Edge of Tomorrow, another fantastic time loop film, boosted Emily Blunt’s career, and, though it may be too early to tell, the Happy Death Day-film series ought to do the same thing for Jessica Rothe. Every time loop film released after 1993 stands on the shoulders of Groundhog Day, and, even though Edge of Tomorrow and Happy Death Day are great films in the subgenre, there are many films that fail to build off of that formula in a satisfying way. Fortunately, Max Barbakow’s Palm Springs is a refreshing and timely (more on this later in the review) time loop film.

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