If you haven’t seen it, then you’ve heard of it. “A Minecraft Movie” (2025) released last weekend.
“Minecraft,” released May 17, 2009, is the second best selling video game of all time (after “Tetris”), with over 300 million copies sold as of October 2023. The sandbox game has over 204 million monthly players and is worth around $2.5 billion. Individuals of all ages enjoy the game for its freedom and open-world concept, which allows players to create virtually anything, as long as it can be made with cubes.
Rumblings of a movie based on the game were first leaked in 2014 by the game’s original creator, Markus "Notch" Persson, who sold the game to Microsoft the same year. After over a decade of administrative changes and creative conflicts, the movie was finally released.
The long work culminated in “A Minecraft Movie,” an adventure comedy that has already set records at the box office.
The story begins with four outsiders stumbling upon the Overworld, the cubic world of the original Minecraft video game. The rag-tag group of misfits, led by Garett “The Garbage Man” Garrison (Jason Momoa), find themselves fighting through swaths of monsters on their first night; only to be saved by Steve (Jack Black), Minecraft’s original default player character and expert crafter.
The group, including brother and sister Henry (Sebastian Hansen) and Natalie (Emma Myers), and a struggling entrepreneur, Dawn (Danielle Brooks), must rely on Steve as navigator in their quest to return to the real world.
Throughout the movie, there is no lack of references to Minecraft game mechanics and community jokes. A number of Minecraft YouTubers made an appearance in the background, including Aphmau, LDShadowLady, DanTDM and Mumbo Jumbo. There was even a reference to Minecraft YouTuber Technoblade, who passed away from cancer in June 2022.
Along with the other nods and easter eggs, the inclusions were well done tributes to the world that has kept the videogame alive for over ten years. The movie itself, however, fell flat.
The crux of the problem is identified by one significant detail: the movie’s soundtrack. Anyone who has played the game knows it can be truly beautiful — the music, the environment and the exploration — but the movie failed to build on these elements.
Minecraft’s soundtrack is arguably one of the best and well-known aspects of the original game. The moments where the soundtrack broke through the otherwise kitschy music brought a sense of discovery reminiscent of first playing the game. However, the movie failed to utilize this element in any significant way.
The blunder highlights the biggest downfall of the movie: it fails to recreate the powerful sense of infinite creativity and exploration that makes the video game so loveable.
The writing was lackluster as lines were repetitive and interactions were cliché. The world, which was so expansive and open in the video game, felt empty and the choppy pacing was a disservice to the audience.
Even the best aspects of the film, which did not stem from the original game, were severely underutilized.
Momoa’s performance was surreal and just ridiculous enough for the movie’s nature. The typically serious actor embraced his role as washed up gamer Garett “The Garbage Man” Garrison, leading to some of the best moments in the film. Yet, his character was out-of-commission for over a third of the movie.
The subplot, which followed Vice Principal Marlene (Jennifer Coolidge) and a Minecraft villager’s (Matt Berry) whirlwind romance, deserved a movie of its own but was limited to three scenes (one of which took place in the credits).
Despite the lackluster plot and questionable creative decisions, the movie has resonated with audiences. Videos have surfaced online of packed theatres screaming and clapping along. Pirated recordings have garnered millions of views. The theatrical experience is being compared to “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” (1975).
The irony of this trend is apparent. The heart of the movie encouraged audiences to embrace creativity, yet failed to embrace the core values of the original video game. However, audiences have found a way to make the movie their own, which may have been the purpose all along.
“A Minecraft Movie” attempts to tap into the childlike wonder of the original game, but, by doing so, becomes an uncanny by-product of poor graphics and a weak plot. Although it had some great moments, “A Minecraft Movie” failed to pay an homage to the original game and became an embarrassment of riches.
