Tetris
Starring: Taron Egerton, Mara Huf, Nikita Efremov, Toby Jones, Oleg Stefan, Roger Allam, Anthony Boyle, Togo Igawa, Ayane Nagabuchi
Directed by: Jon S. Baird
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
2023

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A struggling businessman (Taron Egerton) sees his path to success when he witnesses the game Tetris. He risks everything to travel to the Soviet Union to get worldwide rights.

Review:

Tim: Apple+'s Tetris is an interesting film that shows the battle for Tetris, waged on multiple fronts, to bring the addicting game to worldwide fame. I knew it was a Russian game, but I had no concept of the story of how businessmen fought to gain the rights to bring it to the masses across the globe. It's a good film, but it has clear and brutal flaws that prevent it from becoming anything special. I liked the film, even when aspects of it exasperated me.

First off, it becomes immediately apparent that the movie will limit the "true" aspect of this "true" story anytime it pleases. The film is definitely a piece of entertainment first any following actual events second. I haven't done much research into how much of this story was fabricated for the film, but I'd be stunned if it wasn't a great deal. The movie never sells us on the story. It always feels like a hyperstylized piece of entertainment that doesn't care at all about the truth. Some of the most compelling scenes are so obviously manufactured, their artificial quality immediately apparent. Business deals aren't very exciting and this movie needed to be exciting. So, it continuously exaggerates events, spins a tale that obviously never happened, all to tell a good story. This is obviously a work of fiction, so some of that is perfectly fine. It's not a documentary. The problem is that director Jon S. Baird never even attempts to make the film seem plausible. His whole approach is so over-the-top that even when you're entertained, you feel certain that the movie is playing fast and loose with the truth. That makes it hard to take anything here seriously. Let me contrast this with a film from several years ago, Argo. Ben Affleck's film took a similar approach, ramping up the entertainment by creating scenes that never happened. That film was so compelling that it didn't matter. You were draw into every scene and you got the overall gist of the real story. You could forgive the film of its transgressions. That doesn't happen here. Baird directs a film that feels phony. That being said, it's still fun to watch. I liked it, but this is the biggest reason why the movie wasn't better. It will eventually fade from people's minds.

Speaking of Baird, this is the 2nd film of his I've seen. The first, Stan & Ollie feels exactly like this one. It takes a real subject, shifts it around for entertainment purposes. Like this movie, that one was competently directed. It's a good movie, but it leaves so much to be desired. You know a better version of the movie exists, it's just frustrating that Baird couldn't realize it. That's precisely how I feel about this film. It'll be interesting to see what he does next, because these two films felt nearly identical in how he approached them and what the final deliverable was.

This film is helped out greatly by the cast. Taron Egerton works wonders in the lead. I love the choices Egerton is making with his career. This isn't the kind of film that will put him on the map, but it's a chance for him to showcase his talent and range. He's a subtly impressive actor and I believe he's been showing that he has the ability to play nearly any role. He steps into this character exceptionally well. His performance is faultless- he delivered exactly what the film needed from him. Egerton continues to impress every time I see him. I mean, compare his character here with Elton John in Rocketman or what he did as Robin Hood, or his role in the Kingsman films. He's gaining confidence as an actor and his best work is ahead of him.

The supporting cast didn't have a lot of big names, but they delivered great performances. Nikita Efremov brought so much heart to his performance. Alexey is a character you quickly learn to care about. His performance was pitch perfect- he builds an emotional connection with the audience and then slowly pulls you in. Efremov doesn't get enough screen time, but he fully leverages every scene he's in. I always love seeing Toby Jones and he once again makes this movie better by being in it. He's the next most famous name after Egerton and I was surprised his role was somewhat limited. Still, I enjoyed his time on screen. Oleg Stefan gave a terrific supporting performance. He felt so authentic in the role, I found my eyes going to him whenever he was on screen. Roger Allam was fine, but it felt like something went wrong with his hair/makeup/costume. I never felt comfortable with how he looked and that hurts the realism of the film. Anthony Boyle was so perfectly dislikeable, you have to give him immense credit for pulling that off. I will say one additional complaint is that there weren't more well-written women characters here. Ayane Nagabuchi doesn't get nearly enough to do. The women are mostly relegated to the background and sides here. So, yes, this is definitely a male-focused film. Fortunately for the movie, the actors they cast all give very strong performances.

I really did enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at the effort to get worldwide rights to Tetris. The fact that Nintendo plays a big role in the story was really interesting. There aren't enough movies that explore the video game industry and I really enjoyed the look this film gave us. There's definitely tense moments throughout the film. That being said, Baird's film is too long, at 1 hour 58 minutes. Eventually, we recognize exactly how the movie will end. It takes the movie a long, long time to get there. The middle of the film is quite soggy and it needed to be edited down significantly. The story kind of settles into this circular path and treads down the same roles several times. Business dealings don't make the most interesting pieces of entertainment and while this film works hard to spice it up, it can't completely solve that issue.

In the end, I liked Tetris. Baird might not be a great director, but he's a competent one. He knows how to craft a solid film that mostly holds our attention. The insight into the video game wars and dealing with the Soviet Union are intriguing topics to explore. The cast punches above its weight class. This might not be the most memorable film, but it's a solid, entertaining one.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Stan & Ollie, Eddie the Eagle, Rocketman, The King of Kong