The Imitation Game (2014) Movie Review

The life of mathematician Alan Turing is a remarkable but unfortunately tragic one. Despite his hard work in decoding the German messages – a task which took him and his team years, many of which reaching no results – he wasn’t allowed to release the information of what happened at Bletchley Park to anyone and was later prosecuted for his sexuality. His prosecution has been under much debate since his conviction in 1952, with the Queen giving him a Royal Pardon just last year. As such, it’s good timing that the Weinstein Company have added their Oscar shine over a feature-length retelling of Turing’s life, in particular focusing on the project at Bletchley Park. It’s not the first retelling of a member of the code cracking team, as 2001 focussed Thomas Jericho in Enigma, although featuring a highly fictional side to the story by being based on a book as opposed to the actual events.

One thing to say right out of the gate is that Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance is immensely captivating, and is the best thing to come out of the film. Saying that, he isn’t exactly breaking new ground as he’s done similar performances in Sherlock and Star Trek Into Darkness just with additional emotions and a slight stammer. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it is a difficult manner of speech to do, moreso if you have to do it in various ways like Cumberbatch is, but perhaps due to this heightened expertise with this type of character does he just push himself ahead of the curve. He is a great actor, and well suited for the role of Alan Turing, but it isn’t much new for the actor when looking through his résumé. Someone who should earn the same amount of praise is Keira Knightley as Joan Clarke, the sole female on the team who works on the project in her spare time (due to being a woman). She’s a great presence and does well in holding her own against co-star Cumberbatch, but there is a section of the film in which she falls into generic love interest. While an event which did happen in the actual story and it doesn’t falter the overall quality, it is something which seems all too cliché within the medium. It’s something which occurs quickly, but is a noticeable part of the final film.

The rest of the team aren’t very noticeable, aside from some drama in the early stages of the Bletchley Park events. They don’t take too kindly to Turing and his actions, and tend to stay separate from him in and out of the workplace, but in the end turn to support him and his decisions. They have little impact outside of that until the later stages, but actors Matthew Goode, Allen Leech and Matthew Beard are likable enough in their roles. They may have somewhat forgettable names, but it’s an issue which doesn’t matter when you’re too immersed in the actual events happening to them. Two actors who get more recognition with smaller screen time are Charles Dance and Mark Strong as the two heads for the control of operation. As characters, it’s a repetitive ‘stop-him-let-him-continue’ tale that they lead, but thanks to their performances it elevates these moments into that of actual suspense. They also bring in a good deal of comedy, which adds more to the overall quality of the film due to how uplifting it can be after a darker moment. There’s also a side plot revolving around Rory Kinnear as a police inspector when allegations begin to arise about Turning’s homosexuality – an area which doesn’t get enough coverage aside from these scenes and those set in the late 1920s/early 1930s. He does a good enough job, but his scenes are somewhat limited and terms of exposure and actual importance in the full film. Some areas could be cut, but his and Cumberbatch’s conversation during interrogation does carry the story along while allowing for all three time periods to tell Turing’s life story.

The direction of Morten Tyldum, a Norwegian director in his first English-speaking feature, is that of slight speciality, in which there are moments are absolute beauty and then that of absolute simplicity. Whilst nothing that will garner him a Best Director nod come award season, it is elegant enough to push the overall look – next to the costume and set design – further. The script is the main highlight behind the scenes; originally voted the best unproduced script on the Black List in 2011 (other films from the list include Slumdog Millionaire, The King’s Speech and Argo, all of which later winning Best Picture at the Oscars), it is filled to the brim with bounteous dialogue with an easy enough story ranging from Turing’s childhood to the later years of his short-lived life. It’s strong enough to garner a Best Adapted Screenplay nod – and hopefully a win.

The Imitation Game is a marvellous film. Whilst its style of storytelling is a general form for award movies, it pushes ahead against its contemporaries as an enjoyable and emotional ride, and its final subtitles as the film draws to the close show just how attached you become Alan Turing despite how much of an outsider he is. The performances are strong, the writing is excellent and the direction, while at times playing itself rather safe, is a great view of the story. An Oscar-worthy picture and a possible win for lead Benedict Cumberbatch. 9/10.

The Imitation Game is released in the UK on 14th November, and the US on November 28th.