Brianna DeWert

The rise of video game adaptation movies has been promising so far. Video games such as Angry Birds, Super Mario Bros, Sonic the Hedgehog, and even Five Nights at Freddy’s have been made into successful retellings of their story and characters. When the new Minecraft movie came into theaters, I was hoping for the same rich, nostalgic feeling I got from watching the other video game movies. News was spreading that theaters everywhere were packed with teenagers screaming “Chicken jockey!” or “Release!” or any other famous quote Steve, who was played by Jack Black, said in the trailer. That is another reason why this movie could potentially be saved from the disappointment I faced while watching. 

I believe “A Minecraft Movie” qualifies as a cult classic because it engages a passionate and devoted fanbase in a unique, fun way. The film’s goal is targeted towards just plain fun, which is why this movie can resonate with our generation. Though “A Minecraft Movie” was ultimately awkward and completely unserious, the movie’s ability to utilize its corny jokes and meme-like nature to become a fun, simple form of entertainment kept viewers laughing and entertained. One can realize that audiences nowadays simply want to have a good laugh and just enjoy the experience, not receive some deepening storyline or be forced to be taught some unrelated message thrown in their faces. The movie promotes its weird out-of-pocket scenes and random Steve lines that keep audiences connected with the movie and bonding with each other. This caused “A Minecraft Movie” to obtain a successful place in pop culture as well as social media, which additionally boosted their viewer count. Though the movie itself was not as good as I hoped it would be, the simple connection between the movie’s odd humor and the video game itself is what drove audiences to see “A Minecraft Movie,” which made more than $163 million, breaking records at the box office.

The plot itself started a bit slow, with the main characters Henry and Natalie moving into a new town after the death of their mother. There, they meet the other two main characters, Garret and Dawn, whom they eventually join in a portal to the Overworld in Minecraft. While Emma Myers, who played Natalie, did a great job with her role, I did not feel the same way with the other three characters. I found Henry’s character to be really annoying and nerdy; Sebastian Hansen’s acting was not the best and oftentimes, it just felt as if he had just read his lines the scene before. Screaming at an adult, “You’re the worst person in the whole entire world!” just came off corny as well as many other “serious” lines he said. I feel as if they could do better with the casting direction. Dawn’s character did not stick out to me as much and Garret was funny at times, but I could tell he was targeted towards a younger audience. I don’t even want to mention Jennifer Coolidge’s character because her romance with a CGI Villager was one of the most out-of-pocket side conflicts I have ever watched. While it was funny, it was definitely weird. Even with these flaws, they were still entertaining to an extent, either in a good way or a weird way.

Steve deserves his own paragraph because though I thought he and his famous lines were funny, having Jack Black in this role was odd and unsettling. It just looked like Black was having fun on set and messing around rather than actually acting. He had a lot of strange, random scenes of him just goofing off with Garret and having a good time, which is entertaining on one hand, but also adds to the claim that they were not taking their acting roles or the plot seriously. 

The Villagers, the Creepers, the Endermen and the other animals in “A Minecraft Movie” were very well animated. The CGI for them was detailed enough that they looked realistic but not too realistic to where they just looked like blocks. It was a perfect balance that made the creatures, like the bees, really cute and fun. I cannot say the same for the Overworld environment. There were times in the movie where I could easily tell where a green screen was or where the actors were obviously photoshopped into the scene. An example of this would be when Henry was flying away from the Piglins where I saw a motion blurred background and Henry unable to match the background. Though this was disappointing, I understand how hard it was to make a realistic environment from referencing pixelated blocks.

Whenever the movie tried to give emotion to their scenes, it sadly often failed. Heartfelt scenes with Natalie and Henry were often rushed and it did not feel like their conflicts were much of a big deal. They would hug for a second, saying how deeply sorry they were with sad violins in the background, then immediately jump up three seconds later and forget everything that happened. One scene that was nice was the tribute to famous Minecraft Youtuber Technoblade. I love how the movie wrote the scene, and the audience did as well. The packed crowds cheered when a pig wearing Technoblade’s crown appeared on the screen, with Henry asking if he was a king, to which Steve responded, “No, he’s a legend.”

I do believe that “A Minecraft Movie,” as unserious as it was with story and characters, will go down successfully in history as part of Gen Z’s pop culture. This movie ultimately bonded audiences with nostalgia, humor, and entertainment. While I personally did not like the movie, I can see and agree with the fans that it was an entertaining watch. If you are just looking to laugh at funky lines, have a good time and scream “I…AM STEVE!,” then this movie is for you.