Jack Black, left, Jason Momoa and Sebastian Hansen in “A Minecraft Movie.” Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures via TNS
In order to understand the collective mindset around “A Minecraft Movie,” it’s necessary to revisit one of the most unexpected turning points in cinematic history: the April 1, 2022 release of Sony’s “Morbius.”
Aptly released on April Fools’ Day, “Morbius” ushered in a new age of theater engagement among younger generations of filmgoers — the era of ironic enjoyment.
Crowds flocked to see “Morbius” — a movie widely considered as symbolic of the growing dilution of the superhero genre — as part of the social media trend “It’s Morbin’ Time,” accidentally boosting the film’s profits in the process. Movie studios took notice, sparking an entirely new genre of movies intentionally marketed as stupid to hopefully make back some of their wasted money by riding the coattails of tongue-in-cheek social media movements.
Soon after, crowds of viewers donned suits to watch “Minions: The Rise of Gru” (2022); theaters were crammed with people unable to resist the train-wreck-like allure of “Madame Web” (2024); and now, standing ovations occur when Jack Black shouts “Chicken Jockey” as Steve in “A Minecraft Movie.”
The film, based on the iconic video game for which it’s named, mostly features Black pointing at various objects and creatures the audience might recognize and saying what they are in increasingly over-the-top tones.
The absurdity that this was the best the studios could come up with for the script, combined with Black’s red-in-the-face, sweat-trickling, veins-pulsating passion for his role, led to “A Minecraft Movie” becoming an immediate internet sensation.
And this was to its favor. If “A Minecraft Movie” was evaluated from a purely film-based perspective, it’s mostly a failure. All the characters except for Black’s and Jason Momoa’s Garett Garrison — a lovable, washed-up gaming icon — are completely unlikable.
There’s no real coherent plot, apart from a vague fish-out-of-water story in which Black’s Steve tries to guide a brother-sister duo back to the real world, cramming in as many references to the game along the way.
Director Jared Hess — who also directed the cult classic “Napoleon Dynamite” (2004) — sprinkles just enough genuinely well-made moments throughout the film so audiences can tell “A Minecraft Movie” was, in fact, directed by a competent filmmaker and not AI-generated.
But Hess and the team behind the film were also smart enough to fully lean into the stupidity of the movie, including a last-second casting change for Black from his original role as a talking pig to his star performance as Steve, according to a March 19 Variety article.
Special effects and animation
Aside from Black, the only positive that “A Minecraft Movie” has going for it is the CGI, which looks fantastic, with the exception of some extremely noticeable green-screen sequences; funnily enough, a bootleg version of the movie with unrendered special effects has since leaked online, which ironically might be even funnier to watch.
“A Minecraft Movie” successfully captures the playful feeling of entering a new “Minecraft” world through its landscape designs and character models of all sorts. In the film’s many action scenes, the special effects hold strong, most notably in the minecart chase scene between the main characters and “The Great Hog.”
Despite how great the animation is, the placement of the human characters in the computer-generated world does pull the audience out of the immersion.
The instance during which the poor use of green screen is most noticeable occurs during the elytra wingsuit flight sequence. In this scene, Black, Momoa and Sebastian Eugene Hensen’s “Henry” appear to break up the movement imposed by the background, destroying the illusion of high-octane aviation.
Faithfulness to the game and community
Perhaps one of the biggest draws of “A Minecraft Movie” is its allusions to the beloved video game’s distinct characters, imaginative world and ever-devoted fandom.
The film opens with a background of dirt blocks and a black box in the middle that slowly fills in with color to mimic the game’s iconic world-generating screen, setting the tone for a faithful video game adaptation.
Adding to the enjoyment, Black seemingly names almost every well-known item from the game, and the film remains true to its source with a 20-minute day-to-night cycle and accurate crafting table recipes.
“A Minecraft Movie” also pays homage to those who made the game, featuring cameos from Minecraft’s co-creator Jens Bergensten and Mojang Studios’ senior creative director Torfi Frans Ólafsson.
Though the game’s creators aren’t the community’s most recognizable faces, “A Minecraft Movie” still showcases its big hitters.
Most notably, YouTuber DanTDM appeared as an extra early in the film, and late Minecraft YouTuber Technoblade — who passed away from cancer in June 2022 — took the form of a pig with a golden crown — a nod to his “Minecraft” avatar — whom Steve refers to as a “legend.”
Still, some fans might have a gripe with “A Minecraft Movie” because of its plot discrepancies when compared to the video game, which typically culminates in a battle with the fabled Ender Dragon in another dimension.
Rather, Malgosha (Allan Henry), a decrepit pig leader of the Nether, serves as the film’s main antagonist. And though the character is new, it’s also somewhat bland — almost like a placeholder for a larger villain yet to be introduced.
The film still manages to hit on many of the video game’s main plot points and conventions, including punching trees to acquire wood, building a house on night one, crafting tools and armor, mining, fighting enemies and — most importantly — offering a uniquely creative adventure.
Creativity makes “Minecraft” a game players can return to time and time again, and though the plot of “A Minecraft Movie” isn’t one-to-one with the video game, the story is engaging for all and chock-full of references to entertain both diehard Minecraft fans and casual viewers alike.
Theater experience
Upon entering a practically sold-out theater of families, teenagers and the occasional group of college-aged students, the energy was high. Children began chants of “Chicken Jockey,” to which the crowd responded with laughter and raucous applause.
During the film, every time Black said an iconic or meme-worthy line, the crowd would erupt with an almost feral response. Standing ovations, cheers and full-blown screams were present for nearly a third of the movie’s runtime.
From the renowned lines “Flint and Steel” and “The Nether” to the legendary “Chicken Jockey,” one thing was clear: People were having fun.
This excitement has since turned into a widespread trend, with people across the world lobbing popcorn buckets and slushies like Ender Pearls at the screen, standing on others’ shoulders during the “Chicken Jockey” scene and in some cases, police even being called to shut down screenings.
The level of rowdiness was so high on opening night, “A Minecraft Movie” might just surpass “Avengers: Endgame” (2019) in terms of eager audience participation — especially for an objectively “silly” film such as this one.
It’s not often one’s theater experience affects the rating of a film, but for “A Minecraft Movie,” it absolutely does.
Closing thoughts
If “A Minecraft Movie” is going to be enjoyed, audience members must embrace its foolish irony with open arms.
The film will still be a Frankenstein’s Monster of a movie, combining homages to the game and gratuitous pop culture references, no matter what mindset watchers go in with. But only with the mental fortitude for radical acceptance will it be one of the most fun theater experiences of the year.
Rating: 3/5
