A Minecraft Movie – Review

“A Minecraft Movie” is a fantasy adventure comedy based on the hit video game of the same name, released on April 4, 2025. Jack Black and Jason Momoa star in leading roles, with Emma Myers, Danielle Brooks, and Sebastian Hansen in supporting roles.

Many decades ago, Steve (Jack Black) breaks into an abandoned mineshaft after having an unsuccessful venture as a salesman. He discovers the Orb of Dominance and the Earth Crystal, which summons an interdimensional portal. Appearing in the Overworld, where everything is blocky and made from cubes, Steve’s creativity flourishes as he builds various houses and structures from the ground-up. After discovering another alternate realm, the Nether, he is captured by the nefarious Piglins.

Garrett Garrison (Jason Mamoa) discovers the Orb and Crystal after reluctantly winning a storage unit auction. Just then, Henry (Sebastian Hansen) and Natalie (Emma Myers) move into town. He visits Garrett’s video game store, taking interest in uncovered artifact. Natalie and Dawn (Danielle Brooks), their real estate agent, track them down to the abandoned mineshaft. The four of them rediscover the portal and are sucked into the Overworld, leaving them stranded as various monsters begin to spawn in during night-time. Miraculously, just before the sun rises, Steve appears to fend off the zombie hordes.

After getting acquainted with Steve, Garret reveals to the group that he accidentally shattered the Earth Crystal while trying to run away from the monsters. Steve explains that a replacement can be found at the Woodland Mansion. He leads the four of them to a nearby village, where his personal armory is located. While preparing, the Piglin armies invade the Overworld and prompt them to defend the town. Their persistent forces cause Steve, Garrett, and Henry to split up by taking an alternative route, leaving Natalie and Dawn to fend for themselves in the forest.

Being based on the Minecraft video game, its iconic visuals were translated to the big screen through extensive CGI. The film’s beautiful landscapes perfectly captured ideas of the vast and plentiful terrains found originally in Minecraft. The Villagers and Piglins are now more expressive than ever, compared against their flat video game counterparts.  However, some of the other Overworld inhabitants, such as the zombies, fall into uncanny valley.  This is mostly due to the fact their bodies are human-like, a stark contrast to their already cube-shaped heads.

Although Jack Black’s prominent meme-worthy dialogue is quite entertaining to watch, I feel that Jason Mamoa stole the show with his portrayal of Garrett Garrison. After being washed up following his 1980s video game championship glory, Garrett gained a new friendship with Steve and learned to overcome his own personal issues. However, this development wasn’t really expanded upon for Emma Myers’ Natalie. Having revealed that their mother had passed away, she took responsibility for Henry while also finding a new corporate job. After surviving the Piglin raid on the village, Natalie mentions that she lost out on the chance of growing up like a kid. This could’ve been an interesting plot point to explore, yet she was sidelined along with Danielle Brooks.

All things considered, “A Minecraft Movie” is a good watch for fans of the game, as well as anyone looking for a fun movie.