'A Minecraft Movie' is everything I expected it to be
Poor.
That’s exactly what I expected “A Minecraft Movie” to be and sure enough, that’s what fans got upon release.
Before diving into that, I want to clarify that I am glad this movie finally released as Warner Bros. has been producing this movie since 2014.
11 years later, “A Minecraft Movie” has finally released and follows four misfits (Jason Momoa as Garrett, Sebastian Hansen as Henry, Emma Myers as Natalie and Danielle Brooks as Dawn) who find their paths intertwined upon discovering a magic cube.
This cube manages to transport them to another dimension known as the Overworld where they meet Steve (Jack Black) who has been existing in the dimension for years.
Together, the group team up to defend the Overworld from the evil Piglin sorceress Malgosha who hails from another dimension called the Nether as she seeks to pillage the Overworld for its treasures, namely gold.
I’m not as much of a diehard fan of the game as others might be, but it’s great to see this project finally come to fruition despite its problems, the first of which is slapped everywhere on the internet: the acting.
Not a single performance in this movie stands out with everything being cringey, which is a shame because Momoa, Brooks and Black are genuinely talented actors faced with a horrible script that makes every line of dialogue feel like the most memeable thing to ever grace the silver screen.
I thought the memes leading up to the movie of Black saying the name of things from “Minecraft” was bad enough, but nothing prepared me for the crowd’s reaction to these scenes in the theater.
Every scene of Steve saying something from the game had the theater erupting into excessive cheering and thunderous applause the likes of which I haven’t seen since “Avengers: Endgame” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home.”
The characters are also plagued by a story that’s predictable in every scene. Seriously, if you made a list of clichés, you’d find a good chunk of them in the movie.
However, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Jennifer Coolidge subplot wasn’t as prominent as I thought it’d be, which is a good thing.
Her subplot sees her character as the principal of Henry’s school fall in love with a Nitwit (Villager that can’t be traded with in-game) Villager that made its way into the real world.
So fear not single people: if a Nitwit Villager can find love, so can you.
Something else that surprised me was the design of everything, especially after my initial doubts upon seeing that the movie would be live-action.
Nearly every design you see from the game was practically created with models and life-sized sets that are genuinely well crafted. The designs are uncanny at first, but they really shine after you get used to the initial off-putting feeling.
Taking this a step further, the movie expands on the game by capturing the worldbuilding and creativity that makes “Minecraft” so good. Seeing characters make new things out of existing items in both the Overworld and real world such as a potato launcher and an Iron Golem with Swiftness boots.
Despite this, the movie fails at immersing me in the world. It’s extremely obvious when characters are on a set versus standing in front of a VFX background as a faint white outline appears around the characters.
“A Minecraft Movie” is poor from a filmmaking standpoint, but that’s because this movie isn’t looking to be an Oscar winner but rather a movie for the fans similar to “Five Nights at Freddy’s” where it’s meant to be an experience for the fans more than critical audiences, as seen by the celebratory audience.
Furthermore, there are plenty of references throughout for fans of the game and the community to catch and have a nice smile and warm feeling over as after years of waiting, “A Minecraft Movie” has finally released.
A Minecraft Movie — ★ ★
Release Date: April 4, 2025
Director: Jared Hess
Runtime: 1hr 41m
Rating: PG