The Imitation Game

It was refreshing that a movie about Alan Turing, a brilliant mathematician, didnt bog us down with cryptography equations we wouldnt get. It was a low-key thriller that was rather engrossing, despite not having enough guts to go into places that a complete biopic on Turing might have.

Benedict Cumberbatch will get a well-deserved Oscar nomination for playing a character that obviously has some disorder (Aspergers, OCD, etc.), that makes him come across as arrogant and unlikable.

Just watching the opening scene, in which Commander Denniston (Charles Dance) is interviewing Turing for a job that will have him break the code the Germans were using, is a blast. Turing doesnt understand the sarcasm, but his intelligence is enough to land him the gig.

Turing quickly realizes that the code is unbreakable with a handful of humans working on it. The Germans change the codes constantly, so if a code is decrypted, the next day, theres a new system. Turing wants 100,000 pounds to build a machine, convinced only another machine will be able to compute the calculations fast enough. Yes, its safe to say hes the guy who invented the computer (sorry Al Gore).

Im sure you know what ends up happening, but its a shame that more people dont know exactly what Alan Turing went through. He was a visionary, and a true war hero. Instead of diners in Hillcrest being named after Harvey Milk, they should be named after this guy (although he does have his name attached to something called the Turing test which tests a machines ability to exhibit intelligent behavior thats indistinguishable from that of a real person).

Director Morten Tyldum gives us a nicely layered story. We watch as Turing has difficulty working well with others. Flashbacks show that he didnt get along well with others as a school boy. The various time periods the movie jumps around all work nicely.

We see a crush Turing has on a boy in his elementary school. Its just a heartbreaking segment. We see him having a flirtatious relationship with Joan (Keira Knightley). We watch as some of the people start to understand his genius, yet it doesnt necessarily mean they like him any more because of it.

There could be a spy working with them, too. Oh, and theres that annoying boss Commander Denniston. He doesnt like the money being wasted, and the fact that they dont seem any closer to breaking the code after all the time spent on it.

There are some great edits. One that comes to mind is Turings machine turning on, becoming the spinning mechanisms becoming wheels of a tank.

It was so long ago that I saw this (its one of the many good films I was able to catch at the San Diego Film Festival earlier this year), its hard to remember everything about it.

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The Imitation Game