Masters of the Universe (1987)

The heroic warrior He-Man battles against the evil lord Skeletor and his armies of darkness for control of Castle Grayskull.

Director:

Gary Goddard

Writer:

David Odell

Stars:

Dolph Lundgren, Frank Langella, Meg Foster

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dolph Lundgren	...	He-Man
Frank Langella	...	Skeletor
Meg Foster	...	Evil-Lyn
Billy Barty	...	Gwildor
Courteney Cox	...	Julie Winston
Robert Duncan McNeill	...	Kevin Corrigan
Jon Cypher	...	Duncan (Man-at-Arms)
Chelsea Field	...	Teela
James Tolkan	...	Detective Lubic
Christina Pickles	...	Sorceress of Castle Grayskull
Tony Carroll	...	Beastman
Pons Maar	...	Saurod
Anthony De Longis	...	Blade (as Anthony DeLongis)
Robert Towers	...	Karg
Barry Livingston	...	Charlie

Storyline

On the planet Eternia, Skeletor and his dark army overthrow the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull expecting to acquire her power. He-Man, his old friend Duncan "Man-at-Arms" and his daughter Teela are attacked by Skeletor's soldiers and they defeat them. They also rescue their prisoner, the inventor and locksmith Gwildor. He explains that he was lured by Evil-Lyn that used his invention the Cosmic Key to open the gates and seize the Castle Grayskull. He-Man and his friends retrieve the prototype of the Cosmic Key trying to release the Sorcereress but they are defeated by Skeletor and his army and Gwildor uses his key to open and portal for them to flee. They come to Earth but lose the key. Meanwhile, Julie Winston, who grieves the loss of her parents in a plane crash, and her boyfriend Kevin Corrigan find and activate the key, believing it is a foreign musical instrument. On Eternia, Evil-Lyn locates the Cosmic Key and Skeletor sends her with a group of mercenaries and soldiers to ...

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Plot Keywords:

good versus evil | villain | superhero | magical sword | key | 

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Taglines:

From a distant galaxy... they have come to Earth.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Warner Bros [United States]

Country:

USA Israel

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 August 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Masters of the Universe: The Motion Picture

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$22,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,883,168, 9 August 1987

Gross USA:

$17,336,370

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$17,336,370

Company Credits

Production Co:

Golan-Globus Productions, Edward R. Pressman Film, Cannon Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min 139 min (workprint)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony De Longis said the chain mail of his Blade outfit was 10 six-foot lengths of steel pipe cut into 1/4 inch pieces and weighed over 50 pounds, though De Longis didn't know how much it actually weighed. De Longis's costumer/dresser reportedly wrote the actor a letter because she was worried about his health, since the weight was on top of a suit of surgical rubber. De Longis was able to convince the crew to cut the arms out of his wardrobe to reveal more skin and breathe better.

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Goofs

Throughout the movie, particularly in the beginning with one of the first fight scenes, He-Man appears to have a gash on his upper chest/shoulder area. It switches from right to left and back again several times.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: At the center of the universe, at the border between the light and the dark stands Castle Greyskull. For countless ages, the Sorceress of Greyskull has kept this universe in harmony. But the armies of darkness do not rest, and the capture of Greyskull is ever most in their minds. For with those that control Greyskull, will come the Power... The power to be supreme... the power to be almighty... the power to be... Masters of the Universe!

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Crazy Credits

After the closing credits have ended, Skeletor's head, sans cowl, pops up from the waters of the pit he was thrown in, and says "I'll be back!".

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Connections

Featured in Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)

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Soundtracks

Dear Mr. Fantasy
Written by Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood
Performed by Traffic
Courtesy of Island Records

User Reviews

A lot of fun! Some great performances as well...

I first saw this movie way back in the 80's, and recently got hold of the DVD. I'm pleased to say I still enjoyed it as much as I did back then! While the decision to place part of the story in 1980's suburban America, planet Earth, was no doubt a way to keep the budget low, the end result is still a lot of fun, and the main characters manage to stay pretty close to their original characters. Naturally, though, I'd loved to have seen some more of Eternia instead. Unfortunately, the promised sequel never came to be.

Frank Langella is simply brilliant; his bigger-then-life portrayal of Skeletor may be different from what they did in the TV series, but it works great. He commands every scene he is in, and his performance is powerful yet subtle at certain moments. Wonderful! By the way, be sure to watch until the end credits are over...

Dolph Lundgren, while perhaps not quite the eloquent thespian Langella is, does make a formidable old-fashioned hero.