I got a ticket to see “A Minecraft Movie” last Thursday at the AMC. Despite making me one of millions to have achieved this feat, it is in and of itself remarkable—I have never played Minecraft before, despite it being one of the best-selling video games of all time.
Stacked with a stellar cast, the film stars Jack Black, who stuns as Steve, the iconic diamond-clad main character players of the game will recognize. Also starring is Jason Momoa, whose performance seems to draw inspiration from Ryan Gosling’s Mojo Dojo Ken from “Barbie,” (long hair now included). Undoubtedly, the casting cherry on top is upcoming Emerson commencement speaker Jennifer Coolidge as a kooky vice principal, who finds herself interacting with the world of Minecraft in a B-plot romance.
Our theater was far from packed, yet where the audience fell short in filling seats, they made up for in liveliness. Most of them were probably young twenty-somethings like myself, which means they grew up on the game—given that it came out in 2011, this checks out. It reflected in their cheers at iconic lines like “The children yearn for the mines” (if you know, you know), but the new additions to the plot, on top of references to original lore from the game, were also received well.
That night in particular, the theater particularly appreciated Coolidge’s character, Vice Principal Marlene, and her attempts to pursue a love affair with a “Minecraft” villager (a non-player character) who happens to stumble into the real world. Momoa’s character, Garrett, who often provided comic relief, also garnered a couple laughs.
The movie follows tween Henry, who moves to Chuglass, Idaho, with his sister Natalie after the death of their mom. New to the small town, the two siblings are largely alone, save for their realtor, named Dawn, who doubles as a part-time Mobile Zoo owner (I’m talking about a car with crates of animals strapped to the top). Henry struggles to make friends, and after embarrassing himself on the first day of school, he stumbles upon a magical cube, which results in Henry, Natalie, Dawn, and Garrett finding themselves in the Overworld.
They quickly run into the iconic creatures from the game—Villagers, Creepers, and of course Zombies, coming within inches of their lives before finally being saved by none other than the game’s protagonist, Steve. Nether-bent on getting back home, they embark on a quest to find the now lost Orb, with Steve, who has promised to deliver it to the antagonist Malgosha, who until now has been holding him hostage, in return for his best mate, a dog named Dennis.
Already, the stasis of the first twenty minutes is enhanced with stupid jokes and shitpost-y humor—the right call on the part of the movie’s creators. So much of the culture and attitude around “Minecraft” revolves around this exact type of comedy, which is apparent in viral Minecraft YouTube parody songs like “Eye of the Spider,” (though not included in the movie, it does hold prominence in the greater culture of the game) or the fact that the non-verbal Villagers communicate only by grunting “heh” to each other. This type of humor is entrenched in the world building, so adding more memes, like the town’s name in the movie (Chuglass, pronounced like ‘Douglas’), was received warmly by the audience and created more cohesion between the two worlds being forged here—”Minecraft” the game, and “Minecraft” the movie.
Much of the secondary conflict in this movie happens between Steve and Garrett who butt heads and work overtime to embarrass one another in an attempt to flatter Henry (in a friendly way). The addition of Garrett was a bold one, as the film could have quickly regretted his inclusion—it’s a little strange that a good bit of the character development revolves around two middle-aged men battling for the attention of a fourteen-year-old. However, I thought it was fine, as they’re all mentally the same age, which is where a lot of these characters’ humor derives from.
Part of what made this movie so engaging was the energy emanating from the audience, which I fully attribute to the role “Minecraft” has filled in the cultural zeitgeist. The movie thoughtfully works to satisfy loyal fans with inside jokes, cameos, and songs. What is so expert about the way they did it, though, is that they executed this in a way that did not isolate audiences who were new to the world of “Minecraft.”
I grew up pretty “Minecraft”-adjacent, only being exposed to the game by my childhood best friends. However, I never once felt like a joke went over my head, or that I was missing out on much-needed context that I would’ve gotten from playing the game. The delicate tightrope walk that all adaptations must attempt is to attract the attention of loyal fans, while also opening up the world in their film to new audiences.
Even if you don’t want to see a kids movie, or you aren’t plugged into the world and extensive lore of “Minecraft,” you’ll find this movie enjoyable if you let yourself. Outside of its nostalgic references and themes surrounding the power of creativity, the humor in this movie is accessible and engaging. This provides for funny kicks, and I don’t mean the ones where you politely chuckle—the theater was roaring with laughter at multiple points.
While the world can seem like a hopeless place, “A Minecraft Movie” shows us that a better tomorrow is at our fingertips—once we decide to release our inhibitions and allow ourselves to create it. Especially at a time when kids lack positive influence in their unrestricted social media access, these lessons are refreshing, especially as “Minecraft” remains a household name with so many young fans.
