The Imitation Game
Published 2015-03-09
Film info
- Title The Imitation Game
- Director Morten Tyldum
- Year 2014
- Run time 1hr 54m
- Genres History, Drama, War, Thriller
- Tagline The true enigma was the man who cracked the code
- Cast Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Rory Kinnear, Charles Dance, Mark Strong
The Imitation Game is a dramatic portrayal of the life and work of one of Britain's most extraordinary unsung heroes, Alan Turing. Based on the real life story of Alan Turing, who is credited with cracking the German Enigma code, The Imitation Game portrays the nail-biting race against time by Turing and his brilliant team at Britain's top-secret code-breaking centre, Bletchley Park, during the darkest days of World War II.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 0:33 | Love the ident for Black Bear pictures, how have I never seen that before? |
| 5:04 | It is hard for me not to think he's just being Sherlock. |
| 6:51 | Steam train in London = Hogwarts Express. |
| 8:27 | Bletchley is so beautiful even before you know how important it is. |
| 12:15 | "Enigma isn't difficult, it's impossible." |
| 14:14 | All those egos in one room! |
| 21:24 | Tut tut, the invention of Tipp Ex was a temptation to cheat! |
| 25:35 | My god, kids are horrible. |
| 26:50 | "It's the very people no one imagines very much of, that do the things no one can imagine." |
| 32:17 | I always finish exams early too. |
| 35:53 | Keira's finally found an accent she can do. |
| 44:01 | Aw, he gave his machine a name. |
| 49:47 | Love him telling jokes! That's pretty much how I get on with jokes too! |
| 1:07:52 | We're still grappling with "can machines think?" now, sixty years later. |
| 1:14:40 | Can't take anyone seriously if they're shouting Alan! Alan! |
| 1:18:22 | I can't believe Heil Hitler lost them the war! Ridiculous! |
| 1:23:58 | Totally get the hideous decision here, but surely it's not theirs to make. |
| 1:31:50 | It's all got a bit complicated now. |
| 1:39:33 | Burn everything. Argh!! |
Thoughts
All I actually want to say about this film can be summed up in two words: Brilliant. Painful.
In the spirit of completing at least a couple of paragraphs, I'll expand. Benedict did a great job with a complex character, and along with the smart script managed to make a really difficult and ultimately unlikeable personality sympathetic and even warm. Keira found her perfect accent at last, the ideal role for her. The scenes when she visited at the end were really hard to bear.
Considering the subject matter, it was a really well told story - nothing too graphic in the details, and equally nothing too nerdy when it comes down to a group of people who are only accepted if they are crossword supremos. I did get a bit confused when they started mixing up the spying business in the tale, but it didn't take long to straighten me out again.
Such an important story, well told. Flawless.
Rating: 5 / 5
