Line #27 Film/Tetris2023


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6	->''"It's poetry, art, and math, all working in magical synchronicity! It's...it's the perfect game!"''
7	-->-- '''Henk Rogers'''
8
9	''Tetris'' is a 2023 biographical drama thriller film based around the [[VideoGame/{{Tetris}} iconic video game]] and [[Analysis/{{Tetris}} the legal battles for its licensing]]. It is directed by Jon S. Baird (''Film/StanAndOllie''), produced by Creator/MatthewVaughn, and stars Creator/TaronEgerton, Nikita Yefremov, Creator/RogerAllam, and Creator/TobyJones.
10
11	Egerton plays Henk Rogers, a video game producer who discovers the game created by Russian designer Alexey Pajitnov (Yefremov) and sets out to secure the rights to bundle the game with the upcoming Platform/GameBoy. His quest is complicated however, when he finds the rights to the game are controlled by the Soviet government, who hold a tight grip on the IP. With enemies on both sides of the Iron Curtain, Rogers and Pajitnov must work together to bring the beloved game to the world.
12
13	The film premiered on Creator/AppleTVPlus March 31, 2023.
14
15	'''Previews:''' [[https://youtu.be/-BLM1naCfME Trailer 1]]
16	----
17	!!''Tetris'' provides examples of:
18	* AdaptationalIntelligence: [[{{Nepotism}} Kevin Maxwell]] is shown to be a competent, if somewhat arrogant and pushy, negotiator, managing to secure an initial offer for the Tetris rights from ELORG (though that was mostly due to [[CorruptCorporateExecutive his father]]'s deals with the KGB). As the [[https://youtu.be/_fQtxKmgJC8 Gaming Historian shows]], in reality his ignorance played a huge part in Stein and Mirrorsoft eventually losing the ''Tetris'' deal.
19	* AdaptationalVillainy: The real Robert Stein was more direct in his dealings and was, in fact, already negotiating handheld rights with Atari when Henk Rogers contacted him[[note]] In reality, the Game Boy had already been out in Japan, without any bundled games, for some time by then[[/note]], meaning he didn't go behind his back to screw him. His company, Andromeda Software, was also much more than a simple IP leecher; it had, in fact, developed over 70 titles by the time Tetris came along, and Stein is known in his home country as "[[https://thecinemaholic.com/robert-stein-death/ The Father of Hungarian Video Game Development]]". Also, the movie severely underplays the fact that ''he was the man who discovered'' Tetris, ''recognised its huge potential and first bought it to a wider audience''. In general, he was a much more complicated and sympathetic person than the CorruptBureaucrat with a ChronicBackstabbingDisorder portrayed in the movie.
20	* AirGuitar: Henk Rogers does this during an underground party he attends with Alexey to the theme of Music/{{Europe}}'s "The Final Countdown".
21	* AllForNothing: Kevin Maxwell plays this straight. After going through all the trouble to make a deal with ELORG for ''Tetris'', it turns out [[spoiler:that due to his father's fraudulent activities, the Maxwells don't have the liquid assets necessary to keep their end of the deal in time for the ''Tetris'' rights to be secured. His father [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell]] still congratulates him however, because Kevin's efforts means the Maxwells are now able to [[WhiteCollarCrime bluff Nintendo into signing a fraudulent contract]], something that [[EvenEvilHasStandards horrifies Kevin]]]]. After all of this, he understandably goes into a VillainousBSOD.
22	* AnachronismStew: When Henk mentions [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Zelda and Link]], we see footage of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'', which was made in 2002 while the movie is set in the 80s.
23	* AnAesop:
24	** "Good ideas have no borders".
25	** Friendship has no borders.
26	** Unfortunately, [[HardTruthAesop corruption has no borders too]].
27	* ArtisticLicense: In regards to computer science: When convincing Nintendo to pack ''Tetris'' with the Game Boy instead of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand'', he is able to rewrite his source code for the game to run on the Game Boy simply by changing a few lines of code, and it looks exactly like the commercial release of the game. In reality this would've required major modifications to the source code.
28	** In addition, it's claimed that ''Super Mario Land'' was programmed in C, which also happens to be the language Henk Rogers' version of ''Tetris'' is written in. C compilers in the 80s were not optimized enough to output efficient code to run on video game consoles of the era, and so most games were programmed in assembly. [[AcceptableBreaksFromReality This was likely done because assembly can look like random gibberish to the average layman, while C is much more human readable.]] It was also likely to HandWave the fact that Henk was able to rewrite ''Tetris'' to run on Game Boy so quickly, as C code can be compiled to run on multiple platforms, while code written in assembly would require complete rewrites to run on a new platform.
29	* ArtisticLicenseArt: During his conversation with Yamauchi, Henk talks about partnership, bringing up comparisons with Zelda and Link. The game footage that follows is taken from ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'', a game made [[AnachronismStew long after the release]] of ''Tetris'' on the NES, and the characters shown are the Green and Blue Links, with no Zelda present.
30	* ArtisticLicenseHistory: While roughly based on an account of real-life events, some events were either embellished or introduced to make for a more compelling story:
31	** While Henk really was the one that suggested ''Tetris'' to be bundled with the Game Boy, in reality it was already out in Japan without any bundled games at the time Henk went to Russia to negotiate the handheld rights.
32	** Belikov's BatmanGambit in reality only involved him roasting [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]] over not paying his due royalties and imposing increased rates and penalties (which he was actually prepared to lower if Stein complained) in order to prevent him from [[ReadTheFinePrint reading the fine print]]. The ''Tetris'' arcade rights were not actually involved the negotiations.
33	** While Henk Rogers, Robert Stein and Kevin Maxwell really were in Russia at the same time for the ''Tetris'' rights, they never became aware of each other's presence while they were there. [[spoiler:Henk Rogers and Robert Stein]] never actually met as Belikov was in fact ''very careful'' in keeping all parties separate and arranging his meetings with them in such a way so that they '''wouldn't''' accidentally bump into each other. The ChanceMeetingBetweenAntagonists was just added to the movie to create tension.
34	** The ending car chase was invented purely to give the film an exciting climax. However, the idea didn't come out of nowhere: while it's true that Robert Maxwell attempted to sic the KGB on Henk and co. in retaliation for obtaining the rights to ''Tetris'', in reality the KGB told him that there was nothing they could do since their hands were tied trying to deal with their collapsing government and to [[KnowWhenToFoldEm just give up.]]
35	** Henk was not blackmailed to abandon his pursuit for the rights to ''Tetris'', nor did he miss his daughter's recital to secure the rights.
36	** The Russian government never threatened Henk's wife.
37	** Apparently, Robert Maxwell wasn't as bad in real life as the film made him out to be. In real life, he was ''even worse''. In fact, while the [[WhiteCollarCrime fraudulent contract]] he offered Nintendo didn't actually happen, Robert Maxwell ''built his empire with these sort of deals''.
38	** Valentin Trifonov is an original character made specifically for the film, based on all of corrupt officials in the USSR's ranks.
39	** A minor factual error presented in the ending: Alexey and his family are shown immigrating to San Francisco. They actually immigrated to Seattle.
40	* ArtisticLicenceLaw: Normally, in the case of Robert Stein, where new circumstances arise in an already existing agreement that need to be taken into account (in this case, that he sold the arcade rights illegally and he was able to sell console rights due to a LoopholeAbuse), you wouldn't sign a new contract, you'd sign an ''amendment'' to the original contract (which is what Stein actually signed in RealLife). The term "new contract" is used because most people in the audience are not familiar with contract amendments.
41	* AscendedMeme: While talking with a banker about how lucrative his plan to publish ''Tetris'' for Nintendo can be, Henk states that teaming up with Nintendo is "[...]a license to print money", a nod at memes of Nintendo's Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto and Creator/SatoruIwata bragging about the Nintendo DS: "[[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/it-prints-money IT PRINTS MONEY]]".
42	* AsYouKnow: Subverted. Since the film mostly focuses on Henk Roger's involvement with licensing ''Tetris'', quite a few events took place prior to Roger's involvement, which he recounts to his AudienceSurrogate in the films opening scene.
43	* AvoidTheDreadedGRating: Screenwriter Noah Pink introduced profanity into the script to prevent the movie from being perceived as a children's film, possibly due to the lack of on-screen violence and blood. The f-bomb alone is dropped a whopping '''31 times''' in the film, while other swears only see usage in the single digits.
44	* BaitAndSwitch: Multiple.
45	** The movie opens with Henk Rogers at an electronics convention in Las Vegas, trying to demo and show off his "revolutionary" new computer game... ''[[TabletopGame/{{Go}} Go]]'' for the PC.
46	** While Henk and Alexey are out partying, TheMenInBlack are seen getting into a car and entering an industrial building, presumably to crash the party. [[spoiler:They're actually from the Soviet Embassy in ''Tokyo'', arriving at Henk's software company to threaten his wife and family directly.]]
47	** During the final scene [[spoiler:where Henk Rogers, Minoru Arakawa and Howard Lincoln are being chased by Valentin, who wants to apprehend them in order to prevent the Tetris deal from going forward, he and his agents stop the plane to Tokyo and attempt to arrest the Nintendo team there. It turns out Henk, Minoru and Howard ''took a different plane just to get the hell out of Moscow'' and proceeded to go back to Japan after they landed safely out of KGB/Soviet jurisdiction]].
48	* BasedOnATrueStory: The film is a dramatized account of Henk Rogers' attempts to obtain the ''Tetris'' licenses. While a number of details have been changed, the overall timeline of events has been compressed, and a character or two has been added, the broad strokes of the film are accurate, along with a number of the smaller details.
49	* BatmanGambit: Belikov performs a masterful one on [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]]. After he calls the latter out on illegally selling arcade Rights to Atari he presents him a new LeonineContract for the "Home Computer" AND the "Arcade" rights that Stein stiffed the Russians on. The contract has much higher royalty rates and much stiffer penalties than the original. As Belikov expects, Stein is too focused on negotiating the increase in royalties to ReadTheFinePrint and realize that the new contract now has ''a more restrictive definition of the term "home computer"'' which means he ''is essentially signing his video game rights away''.
50	* BigBad: Robert Maxwell. The film takes many liberties to create a presentable on-screen retelling of events, but Maxwell was every bit the scummy fraudster he is portrayed in the movie. If anything, his own son Kevin Maxwell says the film is a little ''too'' charitable with [[https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/films/1752480/Robert-Maxwell-Tetris-movie-KGB-Kevin-Maxwell-Taron-Egerton-John-S-Baird-interview how it portrays him]]. However, since it would make little sense to have him actively chase down Henk and his partners, he remains a NonActionBigBad.
51	* BigDamnReunion: A non-romantic one at the end of the movie. [[spoiler:Henk Rogers and Alexey Pajitnov]].
52	* BirdsOfAFeather: Once Alexey and Henk manage to spend some time together away from the eyes of the corrupt Soviet Regime, they immediately bond over their mutual love of programming and ''Tetris'', becoming fast friends. They end up becoming TrueCompanions by the time the credits roll.
53	* BitchInSheepsClothing: [[spoiler:Sasha presents herself as a friendly, perhaps even scatterbrained, translator, when in actuality she is a competent KGB agent spying on Henk, and facilitating the Soviets' attempt to blackmail him.]]
54	* {{Blackmail}}: Henk is [[spoiler:kissed by a KGB agent posing as his translator, which he rebuffs. Once he returns home to Tokyo, the Soviets fax him a picture of the kiss with the veiled threat that they will show it to his wife if he doesn't stand down.]]
55	* BrickJoke:
56	** A really dark one. Alexey takes Henk to an underground Russian party, where one makes a RousingSpeech about Russians wanting freedom of expression and "Levi's Jeans". Later [[spoiler: when Henk is ambushed and beaten up by the head of the [=KGB=] he is told "thanks for the Levi's" and his jeans are taken away, thereby forcing Henk to walk back to his hotel in his underwear]].
57	** During the final big chase when Henk Rogers, Minoru Arakawa and Howard Lincoln are making their getaway in the airport, Henk attempts to give Alexey a goodbye ManHug for being his friend and GetawayDriver. Alexey refuses, telling him that this not the time for "American Emotion" before telling him to move quickly into the airplane and not look back. [[spoiler: Those words come back in the BigDamnReunion]].
58	-->'''Henk:''' Is ''now'' the time for "American Emotion"? (ManHug ensues)
59	* BrokenPedestal: Kevin Maxwell starts the movie proud of being Robert Maxwell's son, [[InsistentTerminology even insisting on being called "Mr. Maxwell", by anyone besides his father]]. By the end of it he is [[EvenEvilHasStandards so completely disgusted by his father's immoral (not to mention illegal) actions]], that he wants nothing more to do with him.
60	* CardboardBoxOfUnemployment: [[spoiler: Alexey is shown carrying one, after he loses his job for pulling a FireAlarmDistraction in order to send Henk Rogers the crucial fax that ends up saving his business]].
61	* ChanceMeetingBetweenAntagonists: [[spoiler: Henk Rogers and Robert Stein]] accidentally bump into each other outside of the hotel they were staying at on their way to ELORG. After staring at each other for a few seconds, they can only muster a single response.
62	-->'''Both:''' YOU SON OF A BITCH!!!
63	* ChangedMyMindKid: When Henk returns to Russia [[spoiler: with Howard Lincoln and Minoru Arakawa]] to secure the rights to Tetris once and for all, Alexey tells Rogers that he has used him and asks him to leave Russia and leave him and his family alone. [[spoiler:As he is leaving his hotel, he overhears something from the TheMenInBlack. During the final stretch of the movie Henk Rogers, Howard Lincoln and Minoru Arakawa are about to be detained by TheMenInBlack outside of the ELORG building (with the implication that they are going to be assassinated). Alexey drops in with his car at the last moment to save them and help them escape]].
64	* ChekhovsSkill:
65	** While unsuccessfully trying to get a taxi on his first day in Russian, Henk notices a Russian guy raising a pack of Russian cigarettes easily stopping a taxi. [[spoiler:After his ChanceMeetingBetweenAntagonists with Robert Stein, he uses the same trick to quickly get a cab]].
66	** Henk and Alexey's spatial arrangement skills, [[TheTetrisEffect developed through playing Tetris]] allows them to quickly calculate [[spoiler:that Alexey's small car is ''just small enough'' to slip through the space beside a big truck that's coming their way allowing them to significantly increase the distance between them and the KGB. There is even a SuddenVideoGameMoment before they doing so, displaying Alexey's car, the KGB vehicles and the road as "Tetris Blocks"]].
67	* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Robert Stein betrays everyone he comes across including his main employers, the Maxwells (though this is {{justified\|Trope}} because they don't pay him his due royalties). When Henk Rogers offers to pay him 25K to get the handheld rights to Tetris (handhelds being something Stein didn't even know ''existed'' at the time), he realizes that something big is afoot and goes behind Henk's back to attempt to sell them to Atari for '''100K'''. Henk realizes Stein can't be trusted and heads to Russia to secure the rights himself kickstarting the plot.
68	* ClosetShuffle: Alexey hides Henk in his storage room when he hears a loud bang on his door, since it's illegal for a foreigner to visit a Russian's home without the government's permission and supervision. [[spoiler:Thankfully, it's not the KGB but Alexey asks Henk to leave his house regardless]].
69	* CompletelyUnnecessaryTranslator: At their first encounter Belikov completely ignores Rogers until Henk brings in his translator. Later, Belikov is accompanied to the meetings by a translator of his own. It's not until he slips and answers Henk directly that his ability to speak English is revealed. Justified example, as the translator was probably required both by Soviet protocols and by KGB to keep a constant eye on him.
70	* CompositeCharacter: Valentin Trifonov, the corrupt head of the KGB is not a real person. Instead he is meant to represent all the corrupt officers that led to the USSR's downfall.
71	* ConsolationPrize: Robert Stein might have lost the console and handheld rights, but he still has the home computer and arcade rights by the end of the movie. [[spoiler:Too bad he is not getting any more money out of the arcades and his current computer publishers, Mirrorsoft, aren't going to give him anything because they are about to go bankrupt]][[note]] The WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue in the Gaming Historian's [[https://youtu.be/_fQtxKmgJC8 video]] on ''Tetris'' states that he eventually lost ''those'' rights due to not being able to pay, ''right before the PC boom of the [=mid-90s=]''. Even though he had already made more than 250K from ''Tetris'' [[MyGreatestFailure he never got over losing it.]][[/note]].
72	* CorruptBureaucrat: Robert Stein, the head of Andromeda software, essentially an IP leeching company, who makes his living "scouting for software" (i.e. exploiting the work of talented programmers who are on the wrong side of the Iron Curtain) and selling the rights to the highest bidder. He is the one who supposedly handles the worldwide rights to ''Tetris'', and is only able to do so via doing a LoopholeAbuse of his original contract. He is loyal to nobody and has the [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder bad habit of going behind the back of anyone he interacts with]] including his employers.
73	* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Robert Maxwell ''embodies'' this trope. He defrauds his own employees out of their retirement funds, doesn't pay his due ''Tetris'' royalties, does backdoor dealings with corrupt KGB agents to secure said rights, uses his connection with Gorbachev to attempt to steal the rights away and [[spoiler:lies about having gained ''Tetris''[='=] console and handheld rights to Nintendo in order to make the company sign a fraudulent contract]].
74	* CreativeClosingCredits: Naturally the end credits are set against a game of ''Tetris'', with the cast's photos being incorporated into the Tetrominos.
75	* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Even though he is not stupid by any means, ''nobody'' expected Alexey [[spoiler:to be such a capable GetawayDriver]].
76	* CutApart: As Henk and Alexey are partying at secret nightclub in Moscow, the scene is intercut with two KGB agents walking down a long corridor, leading the viewer to believe that they are about to be apprehended. [[spoiler:The two KGB agents then step through a set of double doors at the end of the corridor and into the offices of Bullet-Proof Software where they threaten Henk's wife. Henk continues to party with Alexey, blissfully unaware of what's happening back in Tokyo.]]
77	* DefrostingIceQueen: A platonic version with Hank and Alexey. Alexey has good reason, of course, to be icy as friendships with foreigners are illegal.
78	* DestroyTheEvidence: Near the end of the movie [[spoiler:Kevin bumps into his father shredding incriminating documents involving the [[https://web.archive.org/web/20140827093109/http://australian-guardians.org/?page_id=808 infamous Daily Mirror Pension Fraud Scandal]]. While this doesn't have anything to do with ''Tetris'' directly, it does explain why the Maxwells don't have enough money to properly pay the one million dollars needed to secure the ''Tetris'' license from ELORG in their initial offer and why they had to renege on it]].
79	* DirtyCommunists: Not played for laughs, but characters like Trifonov were added to the story to represent the problems with the Soviet Union during its waning days.
80	* DissonantSerenity: [[spoiler:Once Sasha is outed as a KGB DoubleAgent, she completely ditches the ManicPixieDreamGirl act and appears in front of Henk in full KGB uniform, completely calm and remorseless. She does this on purpose to unnerve him and break his morale]].
81	* DoubleAgent: [[spoiler:Sasha, Henk's translator, is actually a KGB agent spying on Henk and creating blackmail material to use against him.]]
82	* DragonWithAnAgenda: Trifonov has no actual love for the USSR, and [[PortentOfDoom foresees its downfall within a matter of years.]] What he ''really'' wants is a nice little [[OnlyInItForTheMoney nest egg]] to live off comfortably, and does everything in his power to get the rights to the game to Mirrorsoft, up to and including treason.
83	* DyingTown: Dying nation actually, very much TruthInTelevision. The Soviet Union was on its last gasp at the time, everybody is well aware of that and is trying to position themselves to be in the right place when the nation inevitably fails
84	* EpicFail: During their collective VillainousBreakdown [[{{Nepotism}} Kevin Maxwell]] attempts to throw a punch at [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]]. Stein easily dodges it and starts beating up Kevin instead.
85	* EstablishingCharacterMoment:
86	** Henk Rogers is introduced becoming ''obsessed'' with ''Tetris'' after unsuccessfully trying to promote his ''Go'' game and accurately describing TheTetrisEffect.
87	** The first thing we see Kevin Maxwell do is screw Henk over the ''Tetris'' arcade rights, which puts Henk in dire financial straits, since he needed the capital generated by the arcade to make the initial payment on his bank loan. It's NothingPersonal, however.
88	** Robert Maxwell is introduced casually mentioning [[WhiteCollarCrime "a small error in the retirement fund books"]] to his son Kevin (actually the infamous [[https://web.archive.org/web/20140827093109/http://australian-guardians.org/?page_id=808 Daily Mirror Pension Fund Scandal]]) right before turning his attention back to ''Tetris'' and [[{{Foreshadowing}} refusing to pay Robert Stein his due royalties for the home computer sales]].
89	** Robert Stein, after verbally agreeing with Henk to secure the ''Tetris'' handheld rights for 25K (handhelds being something he didn't even know ''existed'' before Henk told him), [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder goes behind Henk's back and attempts to sell them to Atari for 100k]].
90	** Alexey Pajitnov offers his hard-earned food to a starving woman waiting in line outside the food-store, thus estalishing his HumbleHero status.
91	* EurekaMoment:
92	** Once Henk lays his eyes on the Game Boy, he ''just knows'' that it's '''made''' to be played with ''Tetris''.
93	--->'''Henk:''' If you want ten-year-olds to buy the Game Boy, pack in ''Mario''. If you want ''everyone'' to buy the Game Boy, pack in ''Tetris''.
94	** A more significant one comes near the end. [[spoiler: When Henk sees that Robert Maxwell is paying in book licensing rights instead of money, he realizes that Maxwell is broke and doesn't have the money to actually buy ''Tetris'']].
95	* EvenEvilHasStandards:
96	** Kevin Maxwell might be an arrogant prick [[NothingPersonal who screwed over Henk Rogers over ''Tetris''[='=] arcade rights]] but [[spoiler: even he is disgusted by his father's corruption and behind-the-scenes deals with the corrupt Russian officials]].
97	** [[spoiler: KGB DoubleAgent Sasha is disgusted by her boss' backdoor dealings with Robert Maxwell, realizing that he is a {{hypocrite}} who only cares about making money and doesn't give a flying crap about Communist ideals]].
98	* FascistButInefficient: The Communist regime is shown to be full of corruption from the bottom up to the higher echelons, with at least one ObstructiveBureaucrat present each step of the way, and even the occasional ReasonableAuthorityFigure being mistreated for not falling in line. Meanwhile people are starving in the streets and innovators like Alexey can't even make money out of their own creations. Most Russians know that this system is unsustainable and that it is eventually going to implode.
99	-->'''Hank:''' (when he finds out Alexey isn't making money out of Tetris) That's criminal!\
100	'''Alexey:''' No, that's ''communism''.
101	* FireAlarmDistraction: [[spoiler: Alexey pulls this off, in order to get his superiors out of the Governmental Fax Machine room, long enough for him to send Henk Rogers the expired Maxwell offer-contract handed to him by Belikov, so that Henk will be able to expose the Maxwells]].
102	* FiveSecondForeshadowing: As Henk Rogers and the Nintendo execs walk into the Moscow aiport, [[spoiler:the PA announces that "Flight 702 to Zurich is now boarding."]] Rogers walks up to the ticket counter and asks "What's your next flight out?" Then, as they get in line to present their passports, the PA announces that "Flight 802 to Tokyo via Seoul is now boarding." A minute later, Trifonov and his lackey [[spoiler:board Flight 802 looking for them, only to discover that they're actually on Flight 702.]]
103	** Related, just before TheReveal, [[spoiler:when Trifonov storms onto Flight 802, he enters from the right side of the plane, whereas Henk, Minoru and Howard were shown entering from the ''left'' side moments earlier, and there is a different flight attendant in the cabin. These, plus the movie's earlier use of [[BaitAndSwitch misleading cuts]], are big hints that Trifonov is on the wrong plane.]]
104	* ForcedFromTheirHome: [[spoiler: It happens to Alexey after he loses his job for helping Henk out, courtesy of the corrupt KGB]].
105	* {{Foreshadowing}}:
106	** Robert Maxwell holding back on paying Robert Stein his owed royalties for the home computer ''Tetris'' sales is a serious indicator [[spoiler:that his fraudulent activities left him without any liquid assets to actually pay for ''anything'', which plays a big part during the film's climax]].
107	** The line about Russia selling out to the West by selling the rights to ''Tetris'', told from Valentin, the head of the KGB to Kevin Maxwell, is repeated almost verbatim from Sasha to Henk Rogers. [[spoiler: Guess who turns out to be a DoubleAgent for the KGB later on]].
108	* FreakierThanFiction: One part of the film's tagline is a NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer ("the story you couldn't make up" says the trailer). Understandable, considering one of the toughest, nastiest obstacles to get the game released (as showcased also in the trailer) was [[UsefulNotes/ColdWar the Communist government of the USSR]]. Even more freaky, interviews with some of the real-life people portrayed in this film make clear that, if anything, the film's events are LighterAndSofter than what really happened or would have happened. That said, many of the action scenes such as the car chase, the rush to the airport, and the kiss and blackmail are all ArtisticLicense and RuleOfCool.
109	* GetawayDriver: During the film's climax [[spoiler:Alexey becomes this for Henk Rogers, Minoru Arakawa and Howard Lincoln as they attempt to escape the KGB and exit Moscow in a HotPursuit]].
110	* GetOut: After signing the ''Tetris'' rights to Nintendo and [[NasalTrauma headbutting Robert Maxwell on the nose]], Belikov makes a hand sign cueing both the CorruptCorporateExecutive and his [[{{Nepotism}} snotty son]] to get the hell out of his office. [[VillainExitStageLeft Kevin Maxwell wisely complies]].
111	* TheHeavy: Robert Maxwell may be the overall BigBad of the movie, but Trifonov is a fictional representation of the corruption of the KGB that was impeding the negotiations surrounding ''Tetris'' and is the one who comes into conflict with Henk the most.
112	* HiddenDepths: Henk Roger's might have a "Cowboy" reputation but it also turns out he is ''very good'' at reading contracts and finding potential loopholes. This is what eventually convinces [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG]] to listen to him.
113	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Robert Stein screwing Henk Rogers over the handheld rights is what prompts the latter to go to Russia to get them directly. [[spoiler:Which leads to Henk pointing out to the Russians that Stein sold the arcade rights to Atari illegally and that there was a [[LoopholeAbuse loophole in the original contract]] which allowed him to legally sell the ''Tetris'' video game rights to Nintendo. The loophole is fixed in the LeonineContract Stein is forced to sign for the home computer '''and''' arcade rights. Being blind-sided by being called out by Belikov for illegally selling arcade rights moments before, who [[BatmanGambit also focuses Stein's attention on the increased royalty rates]], Stein doesn't notice the loophole got patched [[VillainousBreakdown and he is not happy when he eventually finds out]]]].
114	* HonestCorporateExecutive:
115	** Henk. He is initially accused of being [[CorruptCorporateExecutive the other kind]] until he points out that he's doing things that are severely disadvantageous to his interests just to secure the rights legally and points out where Stein screwed ELORG in their initial contract.
116	** The Nintendo executives look great in this movie. Their business practices are completely above board and they even end up sticking their necks out to help Henk finally secure the deal in Moscow. Even when it looks like ''Tetris'' is lost to Atari, they confirm they have no issues with Henk and promise to work together on another project.
117	* HotPursuit: One takes place during the film's climax. [[spoiler:Once Howard Lincoln, Minoru Arakawa and Henk Rogers collectively sign the contract with ELORG over ''Tetris''[='=] video game and handheld rights to Nintendo in front of the film's BigBad Robert Maxwell, [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG]] calmly informs them that [[ExactWords they won't be safe until they leave Moscow]]. Robert Maxwell, in a final desperate bid to acquire the rights, makes a deal with the corrupt head of the KGB to apprehend them and cancel the deal (with the implication that he is allowed to torture them or worse in order to do so). The KGB is about to arrest Henk, Howard and Minoru but then [[ChangedMyMindKid Alexey crashes the scene, puts them in his car]] and becomes their GetawayDriver for the rest of the scene]].
118	* HumbleHero: Alexey Pajitnov. He has created one of the greatest games of all time, one that has several factions fighting for the rights to publish it and yet he is perfectly happy to just be a simple computer programmer, staying in the same simple apartment and making just enough to take care of his family. It takes befriending Henk Rogers to get him to aspire for something more.
119	* {{Hypocrite}}:
120	** Valentin, the corrupt head of the KGB who hounds Alexey and Henk throughout the movie. He might make a big speech to Kevin Maxwell about [[SeriousBusiness Russia selling out to the west]] by selling ''Tetris'' to foreigners, but at the end of the day, all he cares about is getting paid, something that [[EvenEvilHasStandards Kevin Maxwell picks up right away and is thoroughly against]]. He also has no problem making backdoor deals with CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell in order to make a profit out of ''Tetris''.
121	** Howard Lincoln tries to dissuade Henk from going to Moscow since they will see an American like him as a threat (despite the fact that he's Dutch). And once he gets to Moscow, Howard's concerns are proven true when the KGB immediately threatens to put him in jail for conducting business while under a tourist visa. Later in the film Lincoln does exactly that, despite being an American himself and in much more danger than Henk or Minoru Arakawa (a Dutch national who runs his business in Japan and a Japanese national and executive for a Japanese owned company).
122	** [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell]] gets called out by Mikhail Gorbachev when he makes a speech to him about protecting his country from capitalism and capitalists.
123	--->'''Gorbachev:''' If am supposed to prevent capitalists from invading the Soviet Union, then what are '''you''' doing here?
124	* IAmTheNoun: Valentin says, "I am the law!" in response to Sasha telling him he broke the law [[spoiler:during his arrest]] near the end.
125	* TheIdealist: Surprisingly, [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure the head of ELORG, Nikolai Belikov]] is shown to be one. He truly embraces Soviet Communist ideals and does his best to XanatosSpeedChess his way into securing the best possible ''Tetris'' deal, ''not for him but for his country''. [[spoiler:It gets beaten out of him by the corrupt leader of the KGB [[DragonWithAnAgenda Valentin Trifonov]], forcing him to face the reality that Communist ideals are in fact dead, which makes him decide to do his best [[NiceJobFixingItVillain to help Henk Rogers expose the corrupt Maxwells]]]].
126	* InsistentTerminology: Kevin Maxwell would like to remind you that he is "Mr. Maxwell", not "Kevin".
127	* KarmicJackpot: For helping Henk Rogers out in his time of need, facing disastrous consequences in doing so and [[spoiler: being his GetawayDriver]] Alexey gains a [[TrueCompanions great friend]], one that helps him settle in the US and start the Tetris Company to ''finally'' gain some royalties from his creation.
128	* LaserGuidedKarma:
129	** Kevin Maxwell nearly drives Henk Rogers to bankruptcy at the start of the movie by screwing him over the Japanese ''Tetris'' arcade rights and handing them over to Sega (though it was NothingPersonal). By the end of the movie he suffers a humiliating defeat over the ''Tetris'' handheld and console rights and the WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue reveals that he went bankrupt himself shortly after the events of the movie took place.
130	** For arranging to have the KGB beat up [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Nikolai Belikov]], the head of ELORG, [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell]] gets [[NasalTrauma his nose smashed in]] when he attempts to attack Belikov after he signs the ''Tetris'' deal with Nintendo. The WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue reveals that Maxwell died while being ''over 5 billion pounds in debt''. His media empire collapsed and he is not-so-fondly remembered in the UK as one of Britain's most notorious fraudsters.
131	** After Henk makes [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]] an offer for the handheld rights (which tips Stein off that something big is afoot) he tries to screw Henk by taking the handheld rights for himself and selling them to the highest bidder. By the end of the movie, Belikov closes the [[LoopholeAbuse legal loophole]] that allowed him to sell the console rights to ''Tetris'', meaning he is '''stuck''' with the home computer and arcade rights, which he already sold and isn't getting any more money for. Even though he didn't go bankrupt after the events of the movie, the WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue confirms [[MyGreatestFailure that he never got over losing the console rights]].
132	** Valentin Trifonov, the corrupt head of the KGB that hounds both Henk and Alexey throughout the movie and [[spoiler:beats up [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Nikolai Belikov]] ''for simply doing his job and trying to secure a good deal for Russia'', ends up getting arrested for treason by his former subordinates, after it turns out he was being bribed by Robert Maxwell and tried to force a deal that wasn't in Russia's best interests]].
133	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: In the context of the trailer. After showing a shot of Rogers getting in a car accident during a high-speed chase, it smashes to black and fades into him in a meeting room, calling someone "the kings of cliffhangers".
134	* LeonineContract: {{Subverted\|Trope}}. The new contract Stein has to sign is ''presented'' to him this way by Belikov, since it not only includes the original's home computer rights, but also the arcade rights which Stein sold to Mirrorsoft illegally. It includes much higher royalty rates and much stiffer penalties than the original contract Stein signed previously. The subversion is that in reality, it's mostly a BatmanGambit made to make Stein negotiate the rates and divert his attention [[ReadTheFinePrint from the fine print]].
135	* LoopholeAbuse: As Henk Rogers explains to Belikov, after the latter accuses the former's NES version of ''Tetris'' to be illegal, [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]] is indeed able to legally sell ''Tetris'' video game rights to Rogers and Atari, even though he was only supposed to get only the home computer rights because the original contract he signed with ELORG has a ''very loose'' definition of what a home computer actually '''is''', meaning it can also apply to consoles.
136	* ManicPixieDreamGirl: Sasha the translator is shown as a kooky and naïve girl [[AntiquatedLinguistics who uses obscure and unusual English vocabulary]] that catches Henk's attention and follows him around during his crazy ideas no matter how much danger they're both in, she becomes his confidante and even kisses him near the climax. [[spoiler: In reality it's all a front, and she's a KGB agent sent to spy on him and the kiss was only meant to give them blackmail material against him, something that [[TruthInTelevision the KGB did do]] in [[https://medium.com/war-is-boring/the-cia-and-kgb-tried-to-blackmail-this-world-leader-with-sex-tapes-927fc7ddbd48 real life]].]]
137	* TheMenInBlack: The KGB Agents who watch Henk's every move in Russia and intimidate Alexey and his family throughout the movie.
138	* MoodyTrailerCoverSong: An ominous, synth version of the game's theme - the Russian folk song "Korobeiniki" - plays over the trailer, mixed with "[[Music/{{Europe}} The Final Countdown]]".
139	* MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels: After securing the funding and (what he thinks are) the rights to start porting ''Tetris'', Henk gathers his Japanese employees to announce, in Japanese, "we are big failures now!" Everyone reacts morosely until Akemi steps in and corrects Henk's pronunciation, and Henk repeats the announcement - "We are big PUBLISHERS now!" - to relieved cheers.
140	* NasalTrauma: Robert Maxwell gains a well-deserved one, when he attempts to physically attack [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Belikov]], after the latter signs over the ''Tetris'' console and handheld rights to Nintendo.
141	* {{Nepotism}}: Played with. It's heavily implied that Kevin Maxwell, got the job as president of Mirrorsoft due to his father's company owning it and throughout the movie he is portrayed as an arrogant {{Jerkass}}. He is also not a CorruptCorporateExecutive like his father, and while he did indeed screw Henk over the ''Tetris'' arcade rights, at the start of the movie, [[EvenEvilHasStandards he draws the line when it comes to using illegal means to achieve his goals]]. [[spoiler:When he finds out that his father went behind his back and bribed the head of the KGB to secure the rights to ''Tetris'' by any means necessary, [[BrokenPedestal he is both disgusted and horrified]], but at this point he has no choice but to go along with it]].
142	* NearVillainVictory: At the halfway mark of the movie, [[spoiler: on Robert Maxwell's orders the KGB beats up Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG and it seems that they have successfully intimidated him into signing over the rights to ''Tetris'' to Mirrorsoft, Maxwell's company. Nintendo exec Howard Lincoln calls Henk Rogers to inform him that he has failed to secure the rights and that they will try to secure them from Mirrorsoft. Henk stands defeated facing bankruptcy. And then it turns out that [[NiceJobFixingItVillain the beating actually convinced Belikov to help Rogers and defy the KGB]]. He hands over a copy of the Mirrorsoft "contract" (actually an offer that expired) to Alexey Pajitnov and instructs him to send it over to Henk. This allows Henk to finally turn the tables on the Maxwells by revealing to Nintendo that ''Mirrorsoft never had a deal with ELORG in the first place'']].
143	* NiceJobFixingItVillain: [[spoiler: The Head KGB Agent brutally beating up [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG]], at the behest of Robert Maxwell is what eventually convinces Belikov to side with Rogers and do everything in his power to help Henk reveal the Maxwells' lies to Nintendo execs Howard Lincoln and Minoru Arakawa thereby securing the rights to ''Tetris'']].
144	* NoHonorAmongThieves: The movie's three main antagonists, Robert Stein, Robert Maxwell and Kevin Maxwell end up '''royally''' screwing over each other with their antics. [[spoiler:Robert Stein goes behind the Maxwells' backs selling video game and handheld rights to the highest bidder (the latter of which he doesn't actually have) which is what causes Henk Rogers to go to the USSR to get the rights directly. This eventually leads Rogers [[HoistByHisOwnPetard to point out to Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG, the loophole in the original contract that allowed Stein to sell the former, and the loophole getting fixed costing Stein, and consequently Mirrorsoft, the console rights]]. Robert Maxwell refuses to pay Stein his owed royalties for ''Tetris'' computer sales (forcing Stein to look for money elsewhere) and does some behind-the-scenes dealings with the KGB, without Stein or his son knowing, which backfires in a '''big''' way, when his attempts to intimidate Belikov by having the KGB beat him up [[NiceJobFixingItVillain end up making him side with Rogers instead]]. He also hides the fact his fraudulent dealings left his company without any money from his own son who is attempting to secure the rights in Russia, thereby resulting in him making an offer to ELORG that the Maxwells can't actually pay and has to be eventually withdrawn. It all ends up with a grand ''triple VillainousBreakdown'' with every one of them going for each other's throats]].
145	* NothingPersonal: Kevin Maxwell screwing Henk Rogers over his promised Japanese arcade rights and giving them to Sega doesn't exactly kill him, but it very nearly ''destroys'' him financially (since he was counting on the quick cash the arcade would give him to make the initial payment on his bank loan) and forces him to look for alternative means to find immediate capital at the start of the movie.
146	* ObstructiveBureaucrat: The communist regime is shown to be full of them (albeit with the occasional ReasonableAuthorityFigure thrown here and there). Robert Stein is a non-Soviet example in addition to being a CorruptBureaucrat.
147	* PacManFever: In the scene where Henk demos ''Super Mario Land'', we hear random music and sound snippets of the game that obviously don't match up to what's happening on-screen.
148	* PaperTiger: Robert Maxwell turns out to be one. [[spoiler:He is broke and doesn't actually have any money left to buy ''Tetris'', attempting to pay in book royalties instead. He makes one last desperate bribe to Valentin, the head KGB agent, to apprehend Henk and stop the deal, but he fails to do so and the ''Tetris'' deal falls through]].
149	* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: [[spoiler: After losing his job and getting evicted from his home for helping Henk, Alexey thinks Henk Rogers used him and tells him to stay away from him and his family when Henk comes back to Russia for the second time with Howard Lincoln and Minoru Arakawa to secure the rights to ''Tetris'' once and for all. [[ChangedMyMindKid When Alexey overhears the KGB planning to detain Henk, he changes his mind and decides to come back to help him]]]].
150	* PointyHairedBoss: Both Robert and Kevin Maxwell are shining examples of this. Robert Maxwell, the head of the Mirror Group, is a CorruptCorporateExecutive who doesn't pay his due royalties, defrauds the pensions of his own employees and built his empire on lies, false promises, backdoor deals with the KGB and WhiteCollarCrime while Kevin Maxwell is an [[RichBitch an arrogant prick]] who [[BadBoss looks down on anyone not his father]], [[NothingPersonal cancels deals signed by his representatives just because a better one came later]] and became the head of Mirrorsoft through the merit of [[{{Nepotism}} being Robert Maxwell's son]]. Even [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]] eventually has enough dealing with them and cuts his ties after punching Kevin and delivering [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech quite a scathing speech]] before leaving.
151	* ProductPlacement: This Apple-distributed film has its main titles displayed on a 1980s Macintosh computer.
152	* ReadTheFinePrint: Robert Stein fails to notice until it's too late that the new contract he has signed with ELORG has a more restrictive definition of the term "home computer," meaning that he can no longer sell the console rights via LoopholeAbuse. To be fair to Stein, this is mostly due to the fact that Belikov [[BatmanGambit focused his attention on the increased royalties and the arcade rights]].
153	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG (the [=USSR's=] software licensing company) surprisingly. He seems to be an ObstructiveBureaucrat at first, but once Henk Rogers explains to him how the wording of the original contract allowed Robert Stein to sell him the console rights to ''Tetris'' and how this can be fixed in a new contract, he is more than willing to listen. In the end he is just someone ''doing his job'' and trying to secure the best deal possible for his country [[XanatosSpeedChess by keeping all sides away from each other, collecting bits of information and adjusting the deals accordingly]]. That being said, [[spoiler:he gets into a lot of trouble with the FascistButInefficient Soviet regime, even receiving a brutal beating by TheMenInBlack for doing so at the behest of Roger Maxwell. In the end, [[NiceJobFixingItVillain this only makes Belikov take Henk Rogers' side]] and he recruits Alexey Pajitnov to send the Maxwell "contract" (which was actually an offer they couldn't pay on time) to Henk via fax, thereby allowing him to expose Maxwell's lies to Howard Lincoln and get Nintendo's support to finally beat the Maxwells]].
154	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: [[CorruptBureaucrat Robert Stein]] delivers a '''big''' one during his final VillainousBreakdown scene with [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell]] and [[RichBitch Kevin Maxwell]], calling out the former on his corruption and greed and the latter on his {{nepotism}} and [[PointyHairedBoss general incompetence]].
155	* RichBitch: Kevin Maxwell is a male example of this trope, being assigned the position of being president of Mirrorsoft, [[{{Nepotism}} purely through the merit of being Robert Maxwell's son]] and looking down arrogantly on anyone that is not [[CorruptCorporateExecutive his father]]. [[spoiler:He does get ''somewhat'' better when he witnesses first-hand [[BrokenPedestal what sort of person his father is]]]].
156	* RogueAgent: Valentin Trifonov is a KGB agent that is supposed to look after his country's best interests. He instead makes a deal with [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Robert Maxwell]] to give him a piece of the ''Tetris'' profits, once Mirrorsoft signs a deal.
157	* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Robert Maxwell frequently uses his friendship with Gorbachev as an excuse to circumvent Russian bureaucracy when it comes to the game rights. [[spoiler:However, those connections mean squat as the Soviet officials know that the USSR is on their way out and they intend on making a major profit on ''Tetris'' one way or another. So when they demand a large sum for the rights that Mirrorsoft doesn't have…]]
158	* SeriousBusiness: The Russians view Henk's efforts to license ''Tetris'' as a crime. They believe it is a slippery slope from licensing a game to selling away the USSR to the highest bidder.[[spoiler:The line, however, is delivered by [[DoubleAgent Valentin]], a person who is well aware that the USSR is halfway to collapse anyways. It's also repeated by Sasha to Henk Rogers, {{foreshadowing}} the fact that she is also a DoubleAgent for the KGB. Additionally, once Mikhail Gorbachev himself learns of the licensing battle from Robert Maxwell, it turns out he has no problem with it]].
159	* SinsOfOurFathers:
160	** {{Invoked}} by Alexey as he reveals to Henk [[spoiler:that his father lost his livelihood in the USSR simply for defending a colleague who published a book abroad. Now that he is helping Hank, this is going to happen to him for creating ''Tetris''. This is thankfully averted by the end of the movie when [[BigDamnReunion Alexey migrates with his family to the US with Henk's help]], and the two become TrueCompanions]].
161	** Robert Maxwell's [[spoiler: behind-the-scenes dealings with the KGB end up [[NiceJobFixingItVillain backfiring on his son Kevin in a big way]] when they push Nikolai Belikov over to Henk's side, eventually leading to Henk revealing to the Nintendo execs that Mirrorsoft, Maxwell's company, didn't actually have '''any''' rights over ''Tetris''. This ''instantly'' makes Nintendo cancel their deal with them and head to Russia to get the deal directly from ELORG. Furthermore, his fraudulent business practices end up leaving the Maxwells without any money to actually '''pay''' for the ''Tetris'' license, leading him to offer book royalties instead, something that [[EurekaMoment Henk sees right through]] when the crucial time comes for the deals to be compared and signed]]. All this leads to a humiliating defeat for Kevin Maxwell and him going bankrupt shortly after the film's end.
162	* ShownTheirWork: While a number of portrayed events are not correct, such as the climactic chase scene with the KGB, [[https://web.archive.org/web/20230401041224/https://www.historyvshollywood.com/reelfaces/tetris-movie/ a lot of the details around the movie are actually true]]. In fact the [[https://web.archive.org/web/20230330223439/https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/films/1752480/Robert-Maxwell-Tetris-movie-KGB-Kevin-Maxwell-Taron-Egerton-John-S-Baird-interview real Kevin Maxwell commented that]] his father and his backdoor dealings with the KGB were ''way worse'' than what is portrayed in the movie.
163	* SuddenVideoGameMoment: Sprinkled throughout the film are moments when video game graphics are imposed upon the real world -- Rogers describing his experience with the game as Tetrominos descend behind him and a car crash suddenly being rendered as a pixilated image -- as well as moments portrayed as video game pixel art such as travel montages, car chases, and establishing shots.
164	* TheTetrisEffect: Henk Rogers describes it pretty accurately during the film's trailer and the opening scene. It's a film involving the TropeNamer after all. It's one of the main reasons he falls in love with the game. [[spoiler:It comes back as a ChekhovsSkill during the film's final ChaseScene]].
165	-->'''Henk:''' This game... It ''stays with you''.
166	* TrueCompanions: Henk Rogers and Alexey Pajitnov end up becoming this as revealed by the WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue.
167	* VillainousBreakdown:
168	** Robert Maxwell, Robert Stein and Kevin Maxwell all have a ''collective one'' near the end of the movie when it turns out that they are about to lose the rights to ''Tetris'' to Nintendo.
169	** Valentin also has one [[spoiler:when he gets arrested for treason by Sasha, his former subordinate]].
170	* VillainExitStageLeft: Right after [[NasalTrauma headbutting Robert Maxwell on the nose]], Belikov makes a gesture to Kevin, cueing him to pick up his father and [[GetOut get the hell out of his office]]. Kevin picks up his case and wisely complies.
171	* VillainousBSOD: Kevin Maxwell has one when he realizes [[spoiler:his father's fraudulent business dealings left their company, Mirrorsoft, without any money to pay ELORG on time in order to properly secure the rights to ''Tetris'']].
172	* WhatTheHellHero: Henk's wife Akemi is none too happy about him missing Maya's concert, and his prioritization of the ''Tetris'' deal over it.
173	* WhenYouComingHomeDad: Henk's daughter Maya expresses her disappointment of her father's absence while he chases the game rights and wishes for him to attend a school concert. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, he just misses it. He makes up for it by watching it with his wife in private at the end of the movie.]]
174	* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: One is shown at the end of the movie showcasing what happened with ''Tetris'' and its major players interspersed with news clips.
175	** The Game Boy became one of Nintendo's biggest sellers, thanks in no small part to ''Tetris''.
176	** The Soviet Union eventually collapsed.
177	** Henk Rogers and Alexey Pajitnov formed the Tetris Company in 1996, thereby helping Alexey ''finally'' receive royalties from his game.
178	** Maya, Henk's daughter, eventually became the company's president.
179	** Robert Maxwell was posthumously convicted of defrauding over 900 million with an overall debt of over ''5 billion''.
180	** Kevin Maxwell was also tried for fraud. It turns out he had no idea of his father's dealings and was found innocent. He tried presiding over his father's company but eventually had to declare bankruptcy.
181	** Robert Stein continued licensing and selling software. [[MyGreatestFailure He never got over]] losing the rights to ''Tetris''.
182	** ''Tetris'' is currently one of the most popular video games ever made, selling over 500 million official units.
183	* WhiteCollarCrime: [[spoiler:Robert Maxwell attempts to have Howard Lincoln and Minoru Arakawa of Nintendo sign a fraudulent contract for the handheld and console rights to ''Tetris'', ''rights that he doesn't have since he failed to pay ELORG the necessary money to secure them'']]. If the [[https://web.archive.org/web/20140827093109/http://australian-guardians.org/?page_id=808 infamous Daily Mirror Pension Fraud Scandal]] (which is also mentioned in the movie) is any indication, he has done such deals plenty of times in the past.
184	* WorkingClassHero: Alexey Pajitnov is an odd case. Despite his game becoming a national sensation, he and his family are still stuck in poverty thanks to being screwed over by his country's communist government.
185	* WouldHurtAChild: Valentin makes it ''very clear'' to Alexey that he '''will''' go after his children, if he continues associating with Henk Rogers.
186	* XanatosSpeedChess: Nikolai Belikov, the head of ELORG, is shown to be '''very''' good at it, keeping Henk Rogers, Robert Stein and Kevin Maxwell separated, collecting bits and pieces of information from them and adjusting contracts as well as approaches accordingly as he tries to secure the best possible deal from ''Tetris'' for his country. [[spoiler:When the KGB gets on his case, however, and brutally beats him up to force him to take up the Maxwells' deal no matter how ridiculously bad it might be for Russia [[NiceJobFixingItVillain he decides to stop playing chess and just help Henk Rogers expose the Maxwells]] in order to secure the ''Tetris'' deal]].

Context Film / Tetris2023