The Secret of the Sword

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The Secret of the Sword
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
  • Ed Friedman
  • Lou Kachivas
  • Marsh Lamore
  • Bill Reed
  • Gwen Wetzler
Written by
Produced by
Starring
Edited byJoe Gall
Music by
Production
company
Distributed byAtlantic Releasing
Release date
  • March 22, 1985 (1985-03-22)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
BudgetUS$2 million[1]
Box office$6,500,000[2]
$7,500,000[3][4] Notably, it is also the very first nationally released theatrical movie in the Masters of The Universe franchise, predating the 1987 live action movie by over two years.

The Secret of the Sword, also known as He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword, is a 1985 American animated superhero film produced by Filmation. Although released before the series She-Ra: Princess of Power began, the film was a compilation of the first five episodes with minor edits made.[5] The film was part of a trend of theatrically released animated films created by producers of TV shows and toys during the 1980s.[6] It is part of the same continuity as the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon series, and was created by the same Filmation production team and cast. It was the first He-Man theatrical film, and the first theatrical release to feature She-Ra or any Masters of The Universe/Princess of Power characters.

Six months after its theatrical release, The Secret of the Sword was televised in episodic form, during the premiere week of the She-Ra TV series, from September 9 to 13, 1985. For series purposes, the film is known as the storyline The Sword of She-Ra.

Plot[edit]

On Eternia, the Sorceress of Castle Grayskull is awakened by the magical 'Sword of Protection', which leads her to a portal known as a 'Time Gate'. She sends Prince Adam and Cringer through the portal to find the person destined to possess the Sword.

Adam and Cringer arrive in the other dimensional world of Etheria, which is ruled by the Horde, an intergalactic army. When Hordesmen soldiers cause trouble at an inn, Adam stands up to them and defeats them with the help of archer Bow. Bow and his friend Kowl are members of the 'Great Rebellion'.

Bow and Kowl take Adam and Cringer to the Rebellion's base in the Whispering Woods. The Horde eventually threatens to enslave the villagers unless the Rebels involved in the fight at the inn surrender themselves. Bow is willing to do so, but Adam and Rebel leader Princess Glimmer convince the group that they should fight back to save the villagers instead.

As the Horde, led by Force Captain Adora, start taking away the villagers, they are attacked by the Rebels, aided by Adam and Cringer in their secret identities as He-Man and Battle Cat. He-Man confronts Adora and the Sword glows in her presence, revealing that she is the one he is looking for. This distraction allows the Horde to knock He-Man out and capture him.

At the Horde's prison complex on Beast Island, Adora interrogates He-Man. She believes the Rebels are evil and the Horde the benevolent rulers of Etheria, despite admitting to not knowing much about life outside the Horde's base. He-Man dares her to see for herself what life on Etheria is really like. The Rebels get into the prison to find him, only to get captured and imprisoned themselves. Kowl eludes capture and frees He-Man, who liberates the others and destroys the prison. Meanwhile, Adora ventures into the towns outside the Fright Zone and witnesses the cruelties Etheria's citizens are forced to endure at the hands of the Horde.

Wielding the Sword, Adora confronts the Horde's leader Hordak. However, Hordesman Shadow Weaver casts her into a mystic sleep that makes her forget what she recently learned.

Later, Hordak shows the Horde his latest weapon: the Magna-Beam, a willpower-fueled transporter that will allow him to send the entire Rebel base into exile forever. He-Man sneaks into the Horde base looking for Adora, who once again thinks he is evil and arrests him. Hordak then confines He-Man in the Magna-Beam's energy chamber to charge it overnight.

That night, Adora has nightmares about He-Man's fate and hears the Sorceress' voice. Talking through the Sword, she asks Adora to help He-Man. The Sorceress also reveals He-Man is Adora's twin brother. When Adam and Adora were born to King Randor and Queen Marlena, Eternia was invaded by the Horde. Unable to defeat the combined might of the Eternian army and the magic of Grayskull, Hordak plotted to demoralize them by kidnapping the newborn royals, aided by his favorite pupil Skeletor. Although the kidnapping was interrupted by Man-At-Arms, Hordak escaped with Adora through a Time Gate. The Sorceress could not discover which dimension Hordak fled to, so she cast a spell that wiped all memory of Adora from all Eternians except for herself, Man-At-Arms, King Randor and Queen Marlena. Thus Adam was raised unaware of Adora's existence.

Adora breaks Shadow Weaver's spell then follows the Sorceress's instructions to use the Sword's magic and transform into the superpowered She-Ra, Princess of Power. After she revives He-Man, the pair destroy the Magna-Beam and make their getaway on Adora's horse Spirit, who in She-Ra's presence is transformed into Swift Wind, a talking, winged unicorn.

At the Rebel camp, the Rebellion accept Adora into their ranks after learning that she was mind-controlled by the Horde. The Rebels also discover that Queen Angella, rightful ruler of the kingdom of Bright Moon, is being held prisoner on nearby Talon Mountain, so Adam and Adora volunteer to rescue her. As He-Man and She-Ra, they free Queen Angella and reunite her with her people (including her daughter Glimmer).

Adam takes Adora back to Eternia to reunite with their parents. After learning that Adora is with the Rebels, Hordak pursues them through the Time Gate. On Eternia, Hordak goes to his old base on Snake Mountain and discovers that Skeletor is now the principal enemy of Eternia. Skeletor agrees to help him get Adora. Magically disguised as cooks and with Hordak hidden inside a giant cake, Skeletor and his henchmen infiltrate the royal palace and kidnap Adora.

Skeletor then betrays Hordak and forces him back to Etheria, planning to ransom Adora himself. However, Adora outwits her captors and, reclaiming her sword, deals with them as She-Ra before running into a rescue party led by He-Man.

Adora decides to return to Etheria to aid the Rebellion, a decision accepted by her family. The Sorceress sends Adora and Spirit back to Etheria, saying they can use the Sword to summon aid from Eternia should they ever need it. Adam and Cringer tag along, offering to "help Adora get the Rebellion off to a big start".

As He-Man and She-Ra, the twins help the Rebels liberate Bright Moon. He-Man and Battle Cat then return to Eternia, while She-Ra and Swift Wind resolve to stay until all of Etheria is free.

Cast[edit]

Comic book[edit]

A comic book, He-Man and She-Ra, Secret of the Sword, was published in 1985 by Mattel Toys as part of their "The Secret of the Sword Sweepstakes." The comic was handed out at theaters prior to seeing the film. The story runs six pages and recaps the film.[7]

In the UK, a film novelisation was published by Ladybird Books.[citation needed]

Reception[edit]

No consensus among critics is currently available at Rotten Tomatoes.[8] Janet Maslin of The New York Times and Charles Solomon of the Los Angeles Times likened the film to a Saturday morning children's cartoon extended to feature film length. Maslin in particular cited the film's plot as "complicated but entirely predictable".[9][10] The film was, however, a box-office success, grossing more than three times its $2 million budget;[1] according to IMDb and Lou Scheimer himself, the movie made over $7.5 million before finishing its theatrical run.[3][4]

Kidtoon Films release[edit]

The film was picked up by Kidtoon Films as part of its weekend matinee program twenty-one years after its release.[11] It returned to theaters on May 6, 2006 and closed on May 28, 2006, replaced the original Dolby Stereo soundtrack with Dolby Digital and DTS tracks, and even though it was shot on film, was shown digitally.[citation needed]

DVD release[edit]

The film was released on DVD in the United States on a two-disc set titled "The Best of She-Ra: Princess of Power" collection on July 18, 2006 by BCI Entertainment’s Ink & Paint brand, which also included five episodes from the series.[5] The set was also released in the United Kingdom by Right Entertainment/Universal in September 2006.[12]

The film was re-released as a stand-alone release in the United Kingdom on July 16, 2007,[13] and in the United States on May 6, 2008.

The film was recently released on DVD as part of the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: The Complete Series DVD from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.[citation needed]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Harmetz, Aljean (May 1, 1985). "Video alters economics of movie animation". The New York Times. Retrieved September 18, 2010. The Secret of the Sword, which cost $2 million and consists of three half-hour television programs stitched together, is faring less well. Mr. Scheimer said he was planning a high-budget movie starring He-Man for the summer of 1987.
  2. ^ "A Rally For G Ratings Clubhouse Gets Bandwagon Rolling For Family Entertainment". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
  3. ^ a b "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword (1985)". IMDb. 22 March 1985. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
  4. ^ a b Scheimer, Lou; Mangels, Andy (2012). Lou Scheimer: Creating the Filmation Generation. Raleigh, NC (USA): TwoMorrows Publishing. p. 224. ISBN 9781605490441. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
  5. ^ a b Douglass Jr., Todd (July 3, 2006). "The Best of She-Ra - Princess of Power". DVD Talk. Retrieved May 26, 2012.
  6. ^ Maltin, Leonard (1987). Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons. New American Library. p. 351. ISBN 0-452-25993-2.
  7. ^ mycomicshop. "He-Man and She-Ra Secret of the Sword (1985 Mattel) comic books". www.mycomicshop.com. Retrieved 2017-06-02.
  8. ^ "He-Man and She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
  9. ^ Maslin, Janet (May 18, 1985). "SCREEN - 'SECRET OF THE SWORD' - Review". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
  10. ^ Solomon, Charles (March 26, 1985). "'SWORD' SHOWS ITS KIDVID ROOTS". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-10-01.
  11. ^ DeMott, Rick (May 5, 2006). "She-Ra To Debut In U.S. Cinemas". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2017-07-07.
  12. ^ "She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword". Amazon UK.
  13. ^ "She-Ra: The Secret of the Sword". Amazon UK.

External links[edit]

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