We’re pretty sure that Apple TV+ could have just reused the tagline for Stanley Kubrick’s Lolita to describe their latest film release: How did they ever make a movie out of Tetris? It’s also pretty fitting that our culture is looser morally and infantilized enough now to say that about a video game instead of a Nabokov masterpiece, but that’s neither here nor there (put down the pitchforks, nerds, we’re just joking around). What is fitting is that, out of all the possible star vehicles for Taron Egerton, this would be the most… surprisingly compelling? Seriously, just watch the trailer that Apple TV+ dropped for the project on Thursday: it’s an espionage thriller that is also somehow about video games, and it looks pretty goddamned solid to us.
Take a look:
Here’s a synopsis, though we really recommend you check out Box Brown’s graphic novel about the exact same subject instead of reading this:
‘”Tetris’ tells the unbelievable story of how one of the world’s most popular video games found its way to avid players around the globe. Henk Rogers (Taron Egerton) discovers Tetris in 1988, and then risks everything by traveling to the Soviet Union, where he joins forces with inventor Alexey Pajitnov (Nikita Efremov) to bring the game to the masses. Based on a true story, ‘Tetris’ is a Cold War-era thriller on steroids, with double-crossing villains, unlikely heroes, and a nail-biting race to the finish.“
Tetris arrives on Apple TV+ on March 31. Genuinely, this is a fabulous and strange story, and we hope that it’s well-served by Egerton and company here, though we’ve learned time-and-again not to bet against Eddie the Eagle. Or Elton John. Or whoever he plays in the Kingsman movies. Also, doesn’t he look fantastic with that mustache? More guys need to go the Henry Cavill route.