A Minecraft Movie: A Surprise Box Office Powerhouse That's Funnier Than It Deserves To Be

A surprising box office hit that very few saw coming—does Minecraft live up to… well, anything? 

My opinion (that you didn’t ask for): We all need a bit of absolutely chaotic fun every now and then, and this movie delivered it in a way that (very pleasantly) surprised me. If you have kids who love the game—or if you’re a fan yourself—you’ll probably have a great time (there was a whole group of people dressed as Steve when my nephews went to see it). It’s definitely a screen. If you have no idea what the game is but need a break from checking the balance of your 401(k), I recommend streaming it. 

Before I go any further... 

Spoiler warning: This review contains spoilers. If you're spoiler-averse, check out the two-minute spoiler-free version on my TikTok (@uninvited.reviewe) or Instagram (@uninvited_reviewer). 

I wasn’t expecting much from this movie. But I’m thrilled to say I got more than I ever anticipated. Turns out, when you throw Jack Black, Jason Momoa, Jennifer Coolidge, Danielle Brooks (a quickly rising star recently seen in Wednesday, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, and set to appear in The Angry Birds Movie 3), and newcomer Sebastian Hansen into a project based on a video game with no real storyline... you get a little bit of genius, a whole lot of ridiculousness, and some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments. 

Surprised? Yeah, me too. 

That doesn’t mean it’s a good movie, per se. Does it have substance? No. Style? Not really. But does it care? Absolutely not. And that level of self-awareness—knowing exactly what it is (a blatant money grab)—actually works in its favor. 

Because rather than being weighed down by the high expectations (and bloated budgets) of other video-game-to-movie flops— 

cough  

Tomb Raider (2018)  

Warcraft  

Assassin’s Creed 

Mortal Kombat  

(Feel free to hit me up with any I’m missing)  

cough— 

—it just chooses to be fun. Or, in the wise words of my nephew: “It was stupid, but funny, so I didn’t care.” 

Take the opening, for example. The movie kicks off with a seven-minute monologue by Jack Black—something that would usually bore me to tears (movie plots should be seen, not told, thank you very much). But I was completely drawn in by Jack Black’s total Jack Black-ness. Not many actors can base an entire character on their own personality and get away with it. But not every actor is Jack Black, and he was totally let off the leash for this one. 

Next, we meet Jason Momoa’s character, Garrett "The Garbage Man" Garrison—a (very) former video game champion who refuses to give up on his childhood dreams. His refusal to grow up is endearing in a wild, chaotic kind of way. His chemistry with Jack Black is what really anchors the movie. They flirt with going way over the top more times than I can count, but somehow always manage to reel it back in just enough. 

Danielle Brooks and Sebastian Hansen play Natalie and Henry, two siblings who move to Chuglass, Idaho—a town whose mascot is a potato named Chuggy (memorably and quickly destroyed by Henry in one of the funnier early moments). They’re joined by Dawn, their eccentric real estate agent-slash-mobile-zoo-owner, rounding out the core cast. 

At just 101 minutes, this movie doesn’t spend time on much of anything other than providing a sandbox for Black and Momoa to play around in. The plot jumps all over the place with no real rhyme or reason—but if you walked into Minecraft expecting coherent structure or emotional depth, you might have missed the memo. 

Final Thoughts:  This movie lacks deeper meaning, substance, or a traditional narrative arc. But it’s fun. It’s funny. And it’s ludicrous enough to keep both kids and adults entertained. Think of it as cinematic junk food: no nutrition, but man, it hits the spot.