Running Time: 100 minutes
This feature from Warner Bros. opens exclusively at theaters on April 4th.
I’m an old guy now, so I never realized this, but the 2011 game Minecraft has been the most popular and highest selling game in the world for some time now. Apparently, there are somewhere around 170 million people worldwide who are probably playing it right now. It’s a “sandbox” game (that can be played individually or in groups) set in a large world of blocks in which individuals can do pretty much anything they like. Build a community, craft tools, go on adventures and complete tasks, fight computer-generated blocky figures, and even, well, try to mine.
Sounds interesting enough, but the lack of clear goals might make it difficult to create a clear outline for a film adaptation. Serious gamers expecting some serious and epic video-game adaptation might take exception to The Minecraft Movie. It plays to a family audience and is certainly not interested in addressing subjects like obsessive gaming. Instead, the film is purely focused on delivering silly fun. While it may not be a classic, it does possess an oddball charm and did raise a few chuckles over the course of its zippy run time.
The opening introduces viewers to Steve (Jack Black), a small-town loner obsessed with mining. He discovers a portal and lands in the Overworld, where everything and everyone is block-shaped. Later, early-20s media rep Natalie (Emma Myers) and her introverted teenage brother Henry (Sebastian Hansen) arrive in the very same town after losing their mother, trying to make a new start at a potato chip factory. Real estate agent Dawn (Danielle Brooks) tries to help them fit in, but things go wrong from the start. Henry befriends cash-strapped entrepreneur Garrett “The Garbage Man” Garrison (Jason Momoa), a once famous arcade-gamer who now appears on Storage Wars-type program. When they discover a powerful cube-shaped orb, the group are transported to the Overworld. They learn that the sinister Malgosha (Rachel House) is plotting to escape from the dark Underworld, take control of the Overworld, and then presumably raid the real world. The heroes have to retrieve the orb and save the day.
It’s pretty broad and silly from the opening moments. Admittedly, a great deal of the film features the characters essentially falling flat on their faces and/or reacting in shock to the truly surreal things surrounding them. Yet the quirkiness is amusing and for this reviewer more gags landed than expected. This weird backdrop allows for some creativity, including weapons like a tater-tot gun that is used to entertaining effect. There is also a great exchange between Steve and Malgosha during the finale that keeps on going, and the audience laughing, as it continues.
The script pokes fun at the nonsensical elements of the world, including that cube orb, as well as the story (which actually all takes place within 24 hours), not to mention the foibles of Garrett. The character is a selfish lunkhead, consistently trying to show off, which, of course, consistently backfires and Mamoa sells it well. And for older folk, in spite of the actual game being from the 2010s and there being references to the era (like Storage Wars), there are just as many nods to the 1980s, arcade games and heavy metal. In fact, viewers can expect a catchy musical number near the close of the film that is delightfully ridiculous. Everyone on screen appears to be having a good time.
For those unfamiliar with the game, there are references that will fly right over one’s head. Many young attendees let out a big reaction at certain points that were completely lost on me. That includes a post-credit scene that really seemed to impress kiddos. It doesn’t go out of its way to explain all the minutiae of the game, but individuals like myself are hardly the target audience.
Obviously, not every joke lands. Many gamers and general audiences may have trouble with the very peculiar characters and sense of humor. The film was directed by Jared Hess, who is responsible for Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre, Gentlemen Broncos (which is a personal favorite) and other efforts. Hess didn’t write this movie and it is more kid-friendly, but this apple doesn’t feel like it has fallen too far off the same tree.
The Minecraft Movie won’t be for all and likely isn’t anything you ever would have seen in the game itself, but that’s perfectly fine by me. It’s silly, it’s strange and quite unlike what you’d expect to see coming out of a major studio. The cast are invested in the weirdness, and, if you can sit back and simply take it all in, it might just leave a smile on your face.