FilmSnobReviews

Title: The Imitation Game
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: Morten Tyldum
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode
Runtime: 1 hr 54 mins

What It Is: Alan Turing (Cumberbatch) is one of the world’s most brilliant mathematicians during World War II suddenly finds himself in a police office investigating a possible burglary. However Detective Nock (Rory Kinnear) seems to think there’s more to this story, and that Turing may be a turncoat. As Turing is interrogated he begins to tell the story of what exactly he did during the second World War. An unbelievable story of how Turing and his team including a woman named Joan Clarke (Knightley) cracked the German Enigma Code and helped win the War fir the Allied Forces. His demeanor is calm and pompous but underneath there is a pain stem from a childhood crush that died, along with hiding his homosexuality from British Law that prohibits such behaviors and deems them criminal.

What We Think: Brilliantly acted and heartbreakingly portrayed the film doesn’t feel as big as it should. Tyldum directs this well enough and he guides the actors through their motions well enough, but theres something amiss about this British biopic. Perhaps it’s the guided by hand approach or the lack of subtlety in the storytelling. Cumberbatch is brilliant as Turing and Keira Knightley shows off her acting chops with this and really earns her Gold Globe nomination, which might turn into a Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Our Grade: B-, That missing piece is evident through and the films doesn’t take any chances. Had it done so it might have avoided feeling like a  cliched stuffy British biopic. It’s hard to tell new stories about World War II, but this one is both new refreshing and most importantly well told. There is one other British film, and another World War II epic out this award season which could hurt this film when it comes to taking home the awards, but not getting the recognition.