Warning: SPOILERS for A Minecraft Movie.Jack Black sings more in A Minecraft Movie than he has in his previous video game adaptations, but some tunes land a little better than others. There are plenty of great Easter eggs in A Minecraft Movie for fans of the game. The inclusion of classic game songs like “Pigstep” in A Minecraft Movie’s soundtrack, for instance, has been a major talking point. But there are also musical moments that will feel catered to Jack Black fans in general.

Much as Minecraft is considered one of the best video games of all time among its more avid proponents, fans of Tenacious D or movies like School of Rock are typically of the mind that Jack Black is a living embodiment of the goofier side of rock and roll. His musical antics demonstrate just how much Black values rock as a lifestyle rather than a mere genre. Fortunately, A Minecraft Movie gives him several chances to put that love on display.

5

Friendship Is The Wish You Make

Rapping Is Not Jack Black’s Forte

The Woodland Mansion sequence is one of A Minecraft Movie’s most memorable, introducing both Minecraft’s chicken jockey and the far more threatening Enderman. To gain access, however, Jack Black’s Steve and Jason Momoa’s Garrett try to distract the guards with a saxophone birthday party. Their song is essentially just a rap about friendship, but with a funky sax breakdown toward the end. It’s also one of the most bizarre scenes in a movie that already feels quite prone to randomness.

First of all, their sax breakdown at the end is literally just Jack Black putting his mouth on the saxophone while making vocal honking noises. Second, Jack Black’s vocal style absolutely does not work for a rap song, even if it’s a mercifully short one. Ultimately, the saxophone party feels less like a fun musical moment and more like a brief roadblock before the film pushes ahead to its much funnier fighting ring scene.

4

Go Now, Dennis

A Disappointingly Brief Diddy

After defeating Malgosha in Minecraft’s The Nether dimension, most of the main cast prepares to leave for the real world while Steve intends to stay in the Overworld. However, Steve agrees to let Danielle Brooks’ Dawn take his dog Dennis back with her as a feature in her mobile zoo. This leads to a heartfelt goodbye between a man and his best friend, made all the more heartbreaking by the fact they’d only recently been reunited after separating earlier in the film.

It’s a touching scene, but it’s severely undercut by the fact that Steve winds up returning to the real world within seconds of watching the others leave. Additionally, the song only really lasts a few seconds and feels oddly similar to “Baby” from The Pick of Destiny thanks to its mournful howl at the end. While most songs in A Minecraft Movie are rather short, it feels like this one could have been extended just slightly to make the moment more impactful.

3

Steve’s Lava Chicken

It Seems The Whole Cast Enjoyed This One

While not all long-time players might appreciate A Minecraft Movie’s changes to the game, there are some parts of the movie that actually inspired new game add-ons. One of them is Steve’s chicken shack, where the chickens are cooked in lava. It’s a fairly superfluous scene, but it serves as a fun way of showing a unique way in which items in the Overworld can interact without a crafting table. Better still, the scene is punctuated by a jingle that fits in perfectly with Jack Black’s typical vocal style.

Although Garrett insults the jingle as soon as Jack Black is done performing, it seems the real-life cast were fans of this one. Jack Black, Jason Momoa, and Danielle Brooks were all able to sing it together on The Kelly Clarkson Show, suggesting that the jingle was so good the supporting cast actually bothered to memorize it. Jack Black and Jason Momoa share a lot of great scenes together, but the lava chicken scene is even better for showcasing how they’ve bonded in real life while working on A Minecraft Movie.

2

Welcome To Steve’s Ultimate Resort Condominium

A Great Tone-Setter For The Rest Of The Movie

Steve was writing jingles well before he started his chicken shack. At the very start of A Minecraft Movie, Steve presents an idea for a new resort that goes over poorly when his jingle isn’t well-received. However, it’s not only a great jingle, but it’s also a tone-setter for the entire movie. It establishes Steve’s love of creativity, and his failure to have that respected is ultimately what drives him to the mines he yearned to explore as a child so he can discover the Orb of Dominance and kickstart the storyline.

Naturally, scenes like this wouldn’t have been as possible if the studio had stuck with their original plans to cast Matt Berry as Steve in A Minecraft Movie. But Steve gives his audience so little time to respond positively to his presentation that the song cuts out just when it feels like it’s really getting started. Not only would a longer version have been more fun, but learning more about Steve might also explain how he’s the kind of guy who could figure out how Minecraft’s water bucket MLG works. Instead, he’s just a guy who really likes crafting things.

1

I Feel Alive

They Saved The Best For Last

With so many musical scenes, it would feel wrong if A Minecraft Movie’s ending didn’t hand Jack Black the mic one last time. Since the ending number “I Feel Alive” is technically the only full-length song Black sings in the film, it’s no surprise that it’s been the most lovingly constructed. Not only is it a quality rock song that combines Steve’s vocal prowess with Garrett’s 1980s rock aesthetic, but the lyrics contain a fairly uplifting message about embracing your childhood creativity.

Plans for Minecraft 2 already appear to be underway, but it’s still too early to tell whether the sequel will include more and better music or abandon that angle entirely. Based on a game where everyone crafts their own world, A Minecraft Movie might just provide a peek into one of infinite canons. It would be disappointing not to pay off the post-credits tease, but it’s nonetheless exciting to see where this surprisingly musical adventure will take us next.