Directed by: Jared Hess
Written by: Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer and Neil Widener
Run Time: 1 hour 41 minutes
With Hollywood realising that recent films based on existing intellectual properties are now making some of the biggest box office returns, it was inevitable that at some point we would be getting a film based on Minecraft – after all, it is the biggest selling game of all time. Fast-forward through years of pre-production hell and a plethora of directors joining and then leaving the project, A Minecraft Movie has now finally been brought to the big screen by Napoleon Dynamite (2004) director Jared Hess. With a $150 million budget and a promising cast, including Jack Black, Jason Momoa and Danielle Brooks, Hess is certainly well-equipped to build one of the biggest films of the year.
A Minecraft Movie follows Steve (Jack Black), a down-on-his-luck salesman who has “yearned for the mines” since his childhood. While exploring them as an adult, he discovers a portal to the Overworld: a blocky dimension that encourages people to create and craft beyond their wildest dreams. Years later, a ragtag team of misfits consisting of gamer manchild Garrett (Jason Momoa), orphaned siblings Henry (Sebastian Hansen) and Natalie (Emma Myers), and estate agent Dawn (Danielle Brooks) find themselves stuck here. With the help of Steve, they aim to protect the powerful Earth Crystal from evil pig leader Malgosha (Rachel House) and find their way home.
Being based on a video game that is all about creativity, it’s a shame that the construction of the film’s plot is so tired and generic. With its extensive use of tropes such as the ‘Macguffin’, the group of unlikely heroes and a gateway to a ‘video game’-type world, it’s hard not to see this as anything other than an attempt to emulate the formula and success of the recent rebooted Jumanji films (also starring Black). Very few of the plot developments are surprising, while the ones that are, just feel like the film pulling things out of thin air to make references to the games. It even leads to a third-act battle against the backdrop of a giant portal in the sky – how original.
The references and knowledge of Minecraft lore will serve as a litmus test for many when it comes to being either engaged or disengaged with the film. A lot of the movie consists of characters using game terminology while pointing at scenery, both as a way to explain concepts to the less familiar and to make the fans clap and cheer at what they recognise. In fairness, when it comes to translating the game to the big screen, it’s clear that the writers and producers have done their research, including references both from within the game and from the surrounding cultural fanbase, satisfying fans of any level. Even if its visuals are rather uncanny (along with particularly woeful greenscreen), it’s surprisingly rare for a video game adaptation to be so knowledgeable about its source material. However, when the film has little else going for it, the majority of people not familiar with the game may struggle to find little, if any reason to care.
Arguably the film’s biggest waste of potential though, is in its cast of characters, most of which are given such little development. After being a charismatic standout in such blockbusters as Aquaman (2018), Dune: Part One (2021) and Fast X (2023), Jason Momoa is unfortunately given very little to work with here. As financially unstable retro-game shop owner Garrett, other than a lot of high-pitched screaming he’s rather one-note. The same can sadly be said for Oscar-nominated actress Danielle Brooks as Dawn, whose only link to the other characters is being estate agent to the aforementioned orphans Henry and Natalie. The link between these three characters feels incredibly forced at best; it would’ve been a lot more impactful if Dawn was a longtime family friend of the two children.
The underworld’s villainous pig leader Malgosha is given similarly insufficient development and backstory, although thanks to the highly entertaining voice performance by Hunt For the Wilderpeople (2016) standout Rachel House, the film maintains its level of mild amusement even when Jack Black is not on screen. Naturally, the final face-off between the pair leads to the film’s biggest laugh out loud moment.
Black, fresh off the success of his role of Bowser in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), serves two purposes as Steve: to explain the world of Minecraft to other characters (and the audience), and to simply, well, be Jack Black, delivering his eccentric style of comedy and sudden outbursts of silly singing. He is one of the film’s biggest bright spots, and with his knowledge of video games in real life and his infectious personality, he is dedicated to making sure the audience is never bored and often succeeds. The combination of him and Jared Hess, who also manages to inject his signature off beat style of comedy to the film, provides many of A Minecraft Movie‘s most entertaining moments, and more than just a few laughs.
Despite these enjoyable aspects and the many references that are sure to delight fans of the game, A Minecraft Movie is sadly unable to escape its corporate and calculated feel. There are ways to defy this; see for example The Lego Movie (2014) or Barbie (2023), films that had plenty of references to themselves and other intellectual properties, yet were also well written, visually stunning and had powerful messages. But unlike those films, which crafted personalities of their own, A Minecraft Movie fails to mine deeper than even just one grass block below the surface.
Star Rating: ★ ★
Not Too Loud 
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