Film 2488 - Masters of the Universe

Intro: I wasn't planning to watch this one, to be fair, but the reviews were better than I expected, and I got intrigued...

Film 2488: "Masters of the Universe" (2026), Travis Knight
Watched: At the movies
Language: English
Watched with: No one
Thoughts: I didn't know much about He-Man. I can vaguely recall watching the cartoon as a child, but if this movie hadn't come out, I probably wouldn't even have remembered the character. Which, in theory, could be a good thing, as "Masters of the Universe" could be the perfect re-introduction to this world. But I'm not 100% sure this film taught me much.
It's been a month since I saw it in theaters, and I have to admit I don't remember much about the story or the characters. It all blended into a mixture of vague memories from this film and possibly other similar ones. I'm thinking of pretty much any superhero origin story from the last decade or so. What I do remember, though, is thinking while watching it that, yeah, "Masters of the Universe" isn't bad, but it also isn't that great either. It's a fun ride for what it is, but compared to other movies that suffered a similar fate*, such as "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves", this one doesn't really have anything that sets it apart. Or maybe it's just me? I'm not sure. I haven't watched many superhero films lately, as I'm currently a bit done with the genre, so it's entirely possible that I checked out a bit while watching.
Other things I remember thinking at the movies:

• I'm not sure Nicholas Galitzine works in this role for me. I only know him from "Bottoms", "Red, White & Royal Blue", and "The Sheep Detectives", and he's clearly talented. Yet I couldn't stop thinking that he's the gay guy from the Amazon Prime gay movie. That's all I could think about.
• Camila Mendes' makeup department choices were... questionable. The colored contact lenses look fake, and her hair color is clearly not her real one. I'm not sure if that was a wig, but it definitely took me out of the movie every time she was on screen.
• The villain. I know that Hollywood keeps thinking that Jared Leto** is this gifted actor who's able to bring in crowds of fans, but a) that was never really the case (go watch "House of Gucci" if you think otherwise), and b) I really don't see the point of casting him here, considering his character, Skeletor, is fully CGI and even the voice is modified. It literally could have been anybody else playing Skeletor, and you wouldn't be able to tell.
• I do believe "Masters of the Universe" came out at the wrong time and is too similar to previous Marvel movies, especially the later "Thor" films. They share a similar Viking-from-another-world vibe, as well as the same tone and humor, which people have been complaining about for a while now.
• Lastly, I don't think the marketing pushed this IP enough or made it interesting enough for people to care. I don't even remember seeing the trailer before going to see the actual movie.

I want to reiterate that "Masters of the Universe" is not a bad movie at all. I was hoping for something a bit more original in terms of tone and vibe, yes, but overall the film is enjoyable. I just didn't connect with it all that much.

* Actually good movies that didn't perform well at the box office, or at least not well enough to justify a sequel or a further expansion of the franchise.

**Jared Leto is currently in deep shit after being accused of sexual misconduct and criminal sexual conduct by four different women. This is the last time I'm acknowledging him on this blog, as from now on I'm only going to list him in the cast section of any film I'm reviewing (that is, if I'm going to see a movie with him in it anymore).

Cast: Nicholas Galitzine, Camila Mendes, Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Morena Baccarin, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Kristen Wiig, Jared Leto, Idris Elba.
Box Office: $114 million
Worth a watch?: A catastrophic flop at the box office - it cost $170 million just to produce - "Masters of the Universe" is good enough for an evening in front of the TV, when your only desire is to turn your brain off and possibly indulge in a little bit of nostalgia.
Awards: /
Key word: "I have the power!".
Trailer
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Bengi

Film 2471 - The Sheep Detectives

Intro: Back in Ireland, I wanted to go and watch "Mortal Kombat II" after work, but the time slots available at Cineworld weren't suitable, so I ended up going to see this one with Debbi instead.

Film 2471: "The Sheep Detectives" (2026), Kyle Balda
Watched: At the movies
Language: English
Watched with: Debbi
Thoughts: I'd be honest, putting Hugh Jackman front and center on the poster and pushing him as the lead of this movie is a little bit of false advertising if I've ever seen one. He's at best a supporting character.
I have no beef - wink wink - with this one, it's a perfectly fine movie that does its job. I'm not as enthusiastic about it as everyone else apparently - the ratings are high almost everywhere and the critics loved it - which kind of surprised me. Usually I'd be the perfect audience for a film like this, but I wasn't as invested, let's say.
Partly because of the Hugh Jackman thing I mentioned, partly because, as good as the CGI is here, it's still too obvious that all the animals are computer-generated, and possibly because I was expecting more after reading the good reviews, I have to admit I wasn't vibing too much with the story and I couldn't really connect with any of the characters.
This is not to say that "The Sheep Detectives" is a bad movie, because it's not. Despite its themes and plot points - a murder, of all things! - it's almost like a fairytale: all the animals talk, the human characters are either stupid or silly (apart from the shepherd, of course), and the animals save the day. The mystery isn't that complex either, in the sense that the green paint found on the body was obviously a clue from the get-go.
All in all, I had a good enough time not to regret watching it. But I don't think I'd watch it again.
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Chris O'Dowd, Regina Hall, Patrick Stewart, Bella Ramsey, Brett Goldstein, Hong Chau, Emma Thompson.
Box Office: $126 million
Worth a watch?: This film gives off whodunnit vibes, a murder mystery solved by sheep, yet it's somehow more of a family-friendly story. If you like movies that include talking animals, though, I'd go with Chris Noonan's "Babe" if I were you.
Awards: /
Key word: Blue and yellow.
Trailer
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Bengi

Film 2213 - Bottoms

Intro: Avevo voglia di un film leggero e spensierato e che possibilmente mi facesse ridere. Il grande successo di una commedia americana a tinte queer sembrava il titolo che facesse al caso mio.

Film 2213: "Bottoms" (2023) di Emma Seligman

Visto: dal computer di casa
Lingua: inglese
Compagnia: nessuno

In sintesi: come al solito, aver letto critiche entusiaste prima della visione del film mi ha creato delle aspettative che poi la visione non è stata in grado di uguagliare.
In tutta onestà, se solitamente questa discrepanza tra l'hype della critica e il mio gusto personale non inficia troppo la mia opinione finale sulla pellicola di turno, in questo caso devo dire che "Bottoms" non mi ha per niente convinto. L'ho trovato caotico e poco divertente, strambo in una maniera non di mio gusto, per un risultato finale che mi ha lasciato più perplesso che soddisfatto della visione. Senza contare che il film è estremamente violento, il che non è certo un problema in generale, ma considerato che mi aspettavo di vedere una commedia queer, diciamo che mi aspettassi tutto tranne che ci si prendesse a botte, si tentasse di assassinare le gente e ***SPOILER*** il tutto finisse in un bagno di sangue.
Probabilmente parte del mio disappunto è derivato dal fatto che o non ho capito le battute o mi mancasse il contesto o i riferimenti culturali per abbracciare appieno un prodotto così profondamente "made in the USA", di fatto "Bottoms" è stato tutto il contrario di quello che mi aspettassi, non mi ha fatto ridere e non è stato per niente quello che cercavo da questa visione.
Cast: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Ruby Cruz, Havana Rose Liu, Kaia Gerber, Nicholas Galitzine, Miles Fowler, Dagmara Domińczyk, Marshawn Lynch.
Box Office: $12 milioni
Vale o non vale: Personalmente non mi ha convinto. Sarà che cercavo (e di conseguenza mi aspettavo) qualcos'altro, forse non ne ho capito lo humor, di fatto "Bottoms" non mi ha fatto ridere e, invece, mi ha colpito per una certa deliberata violenza un po' troppo gratuita e spavalda. Come si dice in inglese, not my cup of tea.
Premi: /
Parola chiave: Pineapple.
Trailer
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Bengi

Film 2211 - Red, White & Royal Blue

Intro: Tornato dal Messico e in assenza di Ciarán, mi sono consolato con la pellicola di Amazon Prime in quel momento sulla bocca di tutti.

Film 2211: "Red, White & Royal Blue" (2023) di Matthew López

Visto: dal computer
Lingua: inglese
Compagnia: nessuno

In sintesi: la romcom gay che ci meritiamo.
Spensierato, divertnete, sexy quanto basta e irriverente al punto giusto, questo "Red, White & Royal Blue" riporta la tradizionale storia d'amore con complicazioni annesse al centro del racconto, posizionandosi inoltre in una sorta di realtà alternativa che chiama in causa altri titoli tradizionalmente drammatici come "House of Cards" e "The Crown", per un risultato finale che si segue con piacere e fa (finalmente) dimenticare la debacle che è stata "Bros".
Non guasta, poi, che i due bei protagonisti Taylor Zakhar Perez e Nicholas Galitzine presentino un'evidente chimica e siano perfettamente in grado di portare sulle proprie spalle le sorti di questa pellicola - tratta dal romanzo di Casey McQuiston - contornati da un buon cast tra cui spiccano Stephen Fry e una Uma Thurman dal curioso accento (del sud, mi pare?).
Insomma, l'adattamento di "Red, White & Royal Blue" funziona e dimostra quanto sia più che mai possibile raccontare la storia d'amore tra due persone dello stesso sesso e farla risultare credibile (seppure in un contesto, qui, incredibile) e, soprattutto, tanto normale quanto qualunque altra storia d'amore. Poi, per carità, è una commedia romantica e, per sua natura, ripulisce, sanifica e idealizza il racconto delle vicende umane; ciononostante il risultato finale è un ulteriore punto a favore della normalizzazione e dello sdoganamento di valori che si oppongo a quella chiusura mentale che ultimamente sembra prendere, ahimè, sempre più piede.
Cast: Taylor Zakhar Perez, Nicholas Galitzine, Clifton Collins Jr., Sarah Shahi, Rachel Hilson, Stephen Fry, Uma Thurman.
Box Office: /
Vale o non vale: Carino, spensierato e, neanche a dirlo, con lieto fine. Certo, molto patinato, ma per chi apprezza o per chi fosse alla ricerca di qualcosa di leggero, questo è sicuramente un titolo da tenere in considerazione.
Premi: Candidato all'Emmy per Outstanding Television Movie.
Parola chiave: King.
Trailer
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Bengi