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Review: The Imitation Game

Nahid Taheri
Team Member

f you are a computer science nerd, you

should probably know Allan Turing. While
there is no Nobel Prize in this major, the
Turing Award is almost the same thing and
it is all because of Allan Turing, the great
computer scientist and mathematician. Even
if you are not studying computer science or
mathematics, you need to watch The Imitation
Game, which is about his incredible job
breaking Germany’s code over the course of
the Second World War.

Director Morten Tyldum's film follows
Turing's journey to break the Enigma
Code, the form in which the Germans
communicated during Second World

War in conducting surprise attacks.
Turing attempts it by building the first
computer, a passion project of his that
was frequently criticized for devoting so
much government time and money.

He deals with social clumsiness, while

also accepting his own homosexuality,
leading to persecution and depression

that eventually caused Turing to take

his own life. The film focuses on his life
achievements rather than his demise, though
it does explore that part of his life, if not
illustrate it as much as it could have done.

Instead of a linear structure, the film
chooses flashbacks to flesh out the full
story of Allan Turing. It does seem a little
extraneous to go back to school with him,

but fortunately the focus of their objectives
and the performances of the young actors
make them worthwhile, as well as showing
the origin of something that changed the
world as we know it. The story is further
expanded with newsreel footage and
scenes of the world at war. Although the
special effects are relatively primitive
compared to what can be achieved these
days, they doesn't hold the film back.

Although Keira Knightley (Joan Clarke)
did not get award attention for her fine
supporting role as Turing’s counterpart,
and her role may not be as meaty, lacking
the highs and lows Cumberbatch (Allan
Turing) has, she makes the most of

her relative sparing use, becoming the
heart of the film. Thanks to her, their

The Imitation Game | Black Bear Pictures

relationship is completely believable,
given that Turing is a man who struggles
with connecting to people, and the way
she manages the choices her character is
set upon is dealt with deft conviction.

It's very easy to get suckered into films that
convince you that you're watching one man
change the world, and The Imitation Game
achieves that effortlessly. However, while
dense in character and plot, The Imitation
Game flashes more on the surface than it has
to offer beneath. The film is poignant, but not
powerful. Entertaining, but not enlightening.

Overall, The Imitation Game is
worth watching, but perhaps wait
until it is released on Netflix.