A Minecraft Movie (2025) Movie Review

A Minecraft Movie (2025) Movie Review

Up until recently, video game adaptations haven’t been the best received both in terms of box office numbers, and critically. With many flops including ‘Assassins Creed’, ‘Hitman’, ‘Hitman: Agent 47’, ‘Doom’ and ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’ just to name a few. However, in recent years, we have seen a shift in this, with many hits hitting both the big and small screen. Some of these hits included: ‘Uncharted’, ‘Tomb Raider’, ‘The Last of Us’, ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 1,2 & 3’, ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’, ‘Detective Pikachu’, ‘Fallout’, ‘Warcraft’, ‘Gran Turismo’ and ‘Borderlands’, all impressing audiences across the globe. This trend has continued into this year, with many of these releases hitting the big and small screen in 2023 and 2024, and many more adaptations and planned sequels on the horizon.  

In 2025, we received one of the biggest success’s yet, with ‘A Minecraft Movie’, hitting cinemas in 2025, taking in more than $954 million at the global box office. Director Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite, Gentlemen Broncos, Masterminds and Nacho Libre) is at the helm here, with a cast including Jack Black, Jason Momoa, Danielle Brooks, Emma Myers, Rachel House and Jennifer Coolidge. The film follows four unlikely heroes—Garrett (played by Jason Momoa), Dawn (Danielle Brooks), Henry (played by Sebastian Hansen), and Natalie (played by Emma Myers)— who are mysteriously transported into the pixelated world of Minecraft, they must learn to survive, build, and battle their way through mobs and monsters. Guided by the iconic Steve (played by Jack Black), they embark on a quest to master the blocky realm and protect it from the looming threat of evil piglins and zombies. Along the way, they discover the power of teamwork, creativity, and courage. Their journey not only changes the Minecraft world but also prepares them to face challenges back in their own. As a fan of Hess and liking the ensemble cast, my interest was piqued by this film.

Straight off the bat, I will admit, I am not the target audience for this film. The film is clearly geared towards a younger audience, and I was never a big Minecraft player. With that said, ‘A Minecraft Movie’ was a lot of fun. First of all, Jared Hess’s direction here, is a big reason why it works. His irreverent humour mixed with fun visuals and absurd realism, makes the film feel and operate in a way, it wouldn’t have with another director at the helm. Hess has made a name for himself with odd characters, Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre are great examples of his strengths as a comedic voice. What he does here with Garrett and Steve, is very similar. Both characters are man-children, trying to grow up and fine their way in an adult world, but refuse to grow up. He works well with Momoa and Black as these characters, giving them freedom to improvise and have fun with the setting. Their performances are appropriate and work really well in the world created by Hess. It’s a lot of fun!

The world and setting are also so much fun. Jared Hess and the creative team, bring over the artistic style of the game here to the film, with the character designs and world feeling in-tact, acting as an extension of the style of the popular video game. The visual flare, is what I found to be the most engaging aspect of the film. The characters interplay to the backdrop of the wacky designs and silly world, all blend really well here. It’s ultra creative, never panders and always remains fun. It’s the perfect type of family film. Appealing to adults, children and everyone in between.

‘A Minecraft Movie’ was a genuine surprise. Like I said, I’ll be the first to admit I am not the target audience here, but with that all said, it was still a great deal of fun. The film is well cast, with its three adult leads in jack Black, Jason Momoa and Danielle Brooks, all doing a great job and clearly having fun. A special shout out to Jennifer Coolidge as well, who shows up in a handful of sequences, providing her trademark weirdness.

Overall, this is a must-watch for all families, and Minecraft fans. It’s the perfect showcase for weird visuals. Be sure to pick-up your copy on DVD, Blu-Ray or 4K Ultra HD from Sanity today, you won’t want to miss it!

For everything else pop culture, make  Sanity your one stop shop, show their tens of thousands of titles on  DVD, Blu-Ray and 4K Ultra HD , not to mention their wide range of  Music, Board Games, video games, statues and collectibles and so much more! 2025 promises to be stacked full of great releases, so make sure you sign up to Sanity's Newsletter, so, you don’t miss another major release and for all things movies, music, merchandise, Sanity!

Long live physical media!

Christopher Pattison from Oz-Movie Geek wrote this blog post for Sanity. See more from Chris here.