20 Recent Movies WAY Better Than They Had Any Right To Be

20. Masters of the Universe

A He-Man reboot in the year of our lord 2026 was just asking for trouble, because the IP simply isn't relevant to most people these days, and those folks who are still invested in the property are likely fiercely resistant to any attempts to "modernise" it.

But director Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings, Bumblebee) brought a welcome lightness of touch to Masters of the Universe which made it a surprisingly fun - if certainly overlong - time.

There's a vein of self-awareness pulsing throughout, yet never in an obnoxiously excessive way where it feels like the writers are embarrassed of the very IP they're adapting.

There's a clear love of He-Man from first frame to last, the performances are all rock solid, it's hilariously weird, and delivers numerous visually dazzling set-pieces.

None of this prevented it from predictably flopping at the box office, but in the very least for those few who still care about He-Man, they finally got a respectful big-budget blockbuster take.