By Christabel Clark 9-10-2023
In 1997 Roger Dean designed the logo for ‘Tetris’. Roger has since had a long-standing friendship with the Tetris company’s founders Alexey Pajitnov (the game’s creator) and Henk Rogers (who secured the rights to publish Tetris) so when we heard a movie was being made about the incredible story behind the licensing of Tetris, we were naturally very excited!
Henk and Alexey met with Roger prior to the film’s release for a wonderful discussion on the upcoming movie and their work. You can watch that interview here.
Now that the film has been released on Apple TV, we’d like to share our review (warning: plot spoilers ahead!)
Many people are by now aware of the peculiar struggle that took place to acquire the rights to Tetris, but for those who might be unfamiliar with the story, don’t make the mistake that this movie will be a nostalgic dive into the pixelated world of gaming's past, neatly lining coloured boxes up on our screens. No, the gripping narrative of ‘Tetris’ delves deep into a clash of ideologies, tech, and geopolitics in the twilight of the Soviet Union.
The movie unfolds in 1988 as Henk Rogers, in the throes of marketing a new video game, finds himself enthralled by "Tetris." What follows is an intricate web of negotiations, cultural exchanges, corporate subterfuge, and high stakes gambits as Rogers attempts to acquire the rights to this Russian gem of a game. He navigates the treacherous terrains of the collapsing Soviet Union, the rising empire of Nintendo, and the shadowy corridors of corporate espionage.
There were some standout performances in this film and the casting of Taron Edgerton as Henk Rogers and Nikita Efremov as Alexey Pajitnov was spot on. Knowing the real-life men these actors were portraying, what struck us most is how well they captured the essence of an emerging friendship that would eventually become a lifelong working partnership. Henk and Alexey have real chemistry as a pairing, despite coming from very different backgrounds and having very individual outlooks and approaches to life. Edgerton and Efremov emulate this connection between the two men, with quick talking, affable Edgerton eventually winning round the more reserved and analytical Efremov.
Another performance that absolutely shone was Sofya Lebedeva as Sasha, Henks’ translator who emerges as an unexpectedly pivotal character, seamlessly navigating her dual roles as a mediator and informant. This gave Lebedeva the chance to showcase an incredible display of versatility, initially exuding a mesmerising blend of naiveté and subtle humour, and later a hard-edged force to be reckoned with who’d make any sacrifice for the good of her country.
In fact, there were several strong female characters in this story, which was refreshing to see, as given the time and the setting such a story could easily have fallen into the trap of being completely male dominated. Henk’s wife was a strong and capable businesswoman in her own right and their driven young daughter, endearingly portrayed by Kanon Narumi, we’re told later went on to become the CEO of Tetris herself.
The use of pixelated ‘Tetris style’ images between scenes was fitting if not unexpected, and cleverly used to introduce characters, demark locations and establish settings. There was an underlying premise that we were ‘Player 1’ going through the levels of Tetris for the first time, which lined up with the steps Henk undertook to license the game. This served well to root the viewer back in that headspace of playing Tetris for the very first time, the addictive nature of this first-of-its-kind game after which, as Henk reminds us, you really do “see falling blocks in [your] dreams”.
The real-life Henk and Alexey warned us that this movie ‘Hollywood-ises’ their story, but that it captures the true feeling of what the journey was like. Boy what a feeling! You’re as on the edge of your seat in this movie’s 80s car chase to a videogame rendition of ‘I need a Hero’ as you are throughout, rooting everything for Rogers who has gambled his life’s savings, his own home and even his family’s welfare on the rights to this game. It's the clash of capitalism and communism, with Rogers unable to comprehend how Pajitnov can have no claim on the game he created himself. “That’s criminal” he states, to which Pajitnov responds “No, that’s communism”. In fact, the first spark of friendship isn’t struck until the pair finally unite on some common ground: their shared passion for game design. Here is the first time we see the pair speak the same language, as it were, and this later blossoms into the film’s message that “good ideas have no borders.”
This was echoed by the film’s use of language, it being almost trilingual in nature, delivered in roughly equal parts Japanese, Russian, and English. It's an unusual delivery and it did wonders in aiding the film’s central theme, that a shared appreciation for and love of good ideas can bridge all cultural divides. It's a wonderful message that makes you finish watching the film feeling bolstered and uplifted. We’d highly recommend this film to anyone interested in the fascinating story behind the inception of this iconic game. And we encourage you to raise a hearty cheer (as we all did) when we saw Roger’s artwork on the walls of Henks’ Tokyo office. After all, good ideas know no boundaries, and deserve to be shared.