Spoiler Warning: There are spoilers ahead for A Minecraft Movie.
In mid-2011, I was dating a partner who loved watching YouTube “Let’s Play” videos. One of their favourite games to watch was the as-yet-unreleased Minecraft, and they insisted I download it and give it a try. So while I can brag that I played Minecraft while it was still in beta… I’m sorry to say that I was unimpressed at first! I remember thinking that the game was a scruffy-looking thing all about building mud huts and digging holes in the dirt, but I played it with my partner for their sake more than mine. I eventually got the hang of it, and I remember building a few fun things like a castle with a lava moat and a pyramid made of red bricks that took forever to craft!
If you’d told me then that Minecraft would remain at the top of the charts for the next fifteen years, be worth billions of dollars, and be the subject of a big-budget Hollywood film, I’d have called you out on your bullshit – because there was no way any of that would be possible. Shows what I know, eh? A Minecraft Movie is the latest adaptation or addition to a growing franchise, one which now comprises multiple spin-off games, toys, merchandise, and even books. Minecraft has become a well-established brand in its own right; a household name that even elderly relatives and non-gamers are familiar with!
Even having seen Minecraft’s phenomenal growth and success, I still wouldn’t have thought it was a good choice to adapt for a narrative feature film. The main game is all about creativity and making your own fun – something that I felt wouldn’t translate well to a linear narrative on the big screen. But Warner Bros. teamed up with Mojang and owner Microsoft to do just that, bringing in established names like Jack Black and Jason Momoa to lead a star-studded cast. And you know what? I actually really liked A Minecraft Movie.
A Minecraft Movie was an incredibly fun watch. I sat there the whole time with a smile on my face as its fast-paced but easy-to-follow story raced past, and there were plenty of laugh-out-loud moments along the way. I felt the film was self-aware, not taking itself too seriously while staying true to what I remember of its source material. There was nothing ground-breaking here in terms of narrative or filmmaking, but that’s just fine. A Minecraft Movie’s writers, producers, actors, and director knew what kind of film they wanted to make and went all-in. The result was a surprisingly fun time. In fact, A Minecraft Movie is the best thing I’ve seen so far this year. Does that mean I have the emotional intelligence of a twelve-year-old? Let’s talk about that!
I chose those words carefully, and I don’t mean it as any kind of insult. A Minecraft Movie is a kids’ film first and foremost, but I’ve always said that the best films made for children have something to offer to adults, too – and A Minecraft Movie is firmly in that camp. While watching it, I felt echoes of being a kid all over again, as if it was a Saturday afternoon and this was the film my friends and I had chosen to watch at our local cinema. I got swept along in the simple good-and-evil story, the emphasis on creativity, and a typical yet incredibly fun and high-energy Jack Black performance… and I genuinely had a whale of a time.
The story that the team created was a good fit. It took elements from Minecraft’s surprisingly deep lore and used them to tell a pretty basic “stop the evil villain from conquering the world” story, one which found time to include most of its main characters and even had a sub-plot about a man missing his dog! I was concerned going into A Minecraft Movie that the story would be too basic; too much of a cookie-cutter storyline. But there was enough of a setup, enough characterisation, and enough of a journey for Henry and Steve in particular to make it absolutely stick the landing.
Photo Credit: Minecraft Wiki
Jack Black is one of those performers who’s instantly recognisable in basically every major role he’s ever played. He brings a ton of energy to his performances – and I think that worked incredibly well here, even though I admit I was sceptical at first! In Minecraft (the main game, at least; I’m less familiar with the spin-offs), Steve is a blank slate for the player to inhabit. A film needs characters with understandable motivations and recognisable personality traits, and there were more than enough of both in this depiction of Steve. In one sense, Steve represents the ultimate escapist fantasy – he quit his mundane and boring life to chase his dreams, and found a whole new world in the process.
The high-octane energy that Jack Black brought to the role was pitch-perfect for the kind of film A Minecraft Movie wanted to be and for the kind of young audience it sought out. It was also a ton of fun to watch, as Jack Black’s performances usually are! Steve’s desire to reunite with his pet dog Dennis (a name I appreciated for obvious reasons!) kept him grounded, and it was a perfectly understandable reason for him to team up with the rest of the main characters.
Henry felt like the film’s point-of-view character, at least at the beginning, and I think he worked well in that role. He was the “player character” insofar as he was figuring out the rules of the world before the gang encountered Steve, and I think anyone who’s played Minecraft, especially in the early days, can relate to figuring out how to knock down trees and craft basic structures! As an outcast, someone with few friends, and someone who struggled to fit in, Henry was also someone that I think a lot of the film’s younger audience will be able to relate to – as well as older folks like myself who remember being in a similar position once upon a time.
Continuing the idea of A Minecraft Movie as an escapist fantasy, Henry is kind of in the same category as Steve – looking to get away from a troubled life plagued by bullies in a new school. He’s introduced to a world where his creativity and imagination – two things kids have in droves – are incredibly important, and where he can put his unique skills and talents to use.
Henry’s sister, Natalie, was less keen on hopping over to a new world – but she rose to the occasion! Natalie had struggled with taking care of her brother, but her adventures in the world of Minecraft helped her discover her inner strength and build a stronger bond with him. Though she was in focus less of the time, she still got a satisfying arc.
Teaming up with Natalie for parts of the film was Dawn, and though I wouldn’t say she got as much of an “arc” insofar as she began and ended the story in a similar place, her love for animals shone through – and became important as the story reached its climax. She was a fun character, and made a great foil for Garrett and teammate to Natalie throughout the adventure.
Garrett was an interesting character. Maybe this is just me, but I felt echoes of a real-life gamer personality called Billy Mitchell in the conceptualisation of Garrett. Mitchell, if you’re unaware, was world champion of the original Donkey Kong arcade game and achieved the highest possible score on Pac-Man, and was the subject of the 2007 documentary The King of Kong.
If Henry and Steve represent the escapist fantasy, Garrett was actually the character who felt closest to reality. His financial struggles were relatable, and the facade he put up while dealing with the potential collapse of his business – and his own loneliness and self-esteem issues – is something that hit close to home. In terms of his personality, Garrett was obviously a bit of a clown and someone we aren’t meant to really root for. Someone who presents as arrogant, cocky, and just rude isn’t going to be the easiest character to support. But A Minecraft Movie was surprisingly delicate in its handling of this character, and what we glimpsed beneath the surface was a deeply lonely, sad, and self-pitying man – one who (eventually) stepped up to help his newfound friends.
A Minecraft Movie felt, in places, like a kids’ film from the ’80s or early ’90s, and perhaps that’s part of why I liked it so much. Seeing Henry struggle as the new kid at school with bullies before running away to a fantasy world… it’s giving me The NeverEnding Story vibes, which is one of my favourite films from when I was a kid! The two are different in tone, style, pacing, effects, and so on… but there are also some similarities in terms of characterisation and story that I think were important for me personally in relating to A Minecraft Movie.
Visual effects in A Minecraft Movie took a bit of getting used to, to be honest. The game’s pixellated art style was completely changed for the film, with semi-realistic textures applied over Minecraft’s trademark cubes and blocks. When it came to things like trees and stones, I was fine with it. When it came to faces and animals… that’s where it took me a minute to adjust! I can see this being a possible point of contention; some game fans might not like the realistic direction, and some folks who are less familiar with the games might struggle with the blockiness of characters and animals in particular. But once I got used to the way the film looked, I didn’t have a problem with it. Some of the landscapes and vistas were genuinely impressive, and the way the film blended CGI with real actors and props was seamless and impressive.
Photo Credit: Minecraft Wiki
The soundtrack was fantastic, too. An up-tempo score and high-energy pop and heavy metal songs were pitch-perfect for the film and its fast pace. Battling the bad guys – particularly toward the end of the film – was elevated by the use of music, and the entire soundtrack just made the film so much better. I’d also be remiss not to mention Steve’s Lava Chicken – the song reached number 9 on the UK music charts (and also charted in the United States and elsewhere) becoming the shortest-ever song to crack the top 20 at a mere 34 seconds long!
So that was A Minecraft Movie. It was fun. Simple, child-friendly fun.
I had a way better time with A Minecraft Movie than I could’ve anticipated, to be honest with you. This picture could’ve gone either way – it might’ve been utterly awful; the kind of kids’ film that might make the little ones smile but does absolutely nothing for me. Or it could’ve been “so bad it’s good;” the kind of film that’s worth watching ironically because of how poor the quality is across the board. But instead, A Minecraft Movie was genuinely enjoyable – a fast-paced, modern kids’ film that feels like a throwback to the ’80s and ’90s in the best possible way.
A Minecraft Movie is an easy recommendation now that it’s available to watch at home. Whether you have little ones or not, and whether you’re familiar with the video game or not, I think it’s a ton of fun and easy to get stuck into. Having some basic knowledge of Minecraft might help elevate some plot points here or there, but the film is a soft landing for folks who don’t have that background, and I don’t think you’re going to miss much if you’ve never played the game or any of its spin-offs.
I doubt I’ll say that A Minecraft Movie is my favourite film of 2025. There’s still more than half of the year to go and some big blockbusters on the way. But in terms of pure entertainment and laugh-out-loud fun? I had a blast switching off and going on a whirlwind adventure in this strange blocky world! Definitely check out A Minecraft Movie if you haven’t already.
A Minecraft Movie is available to buy or rent now via Amazon Prime, Google Play, and other video-on-demand platforms. A Minecraft Movie will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in June 2025. A Minecraft Movie is the copyright of Warner Bros., Legendary Pictures, Mojang Studios, Vertigo Entertainment, and/or Microsoft. This review contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.
Trekking with Dennis 