Much of the credit for World War II ending in 1945 instead possibly a couple of years later can be attributed to a gentleman named Alan Turing…
Benedict Cumberbatch portrays the brilliant British mathematician and cryptanalyst responsible for breaking the Nazi’s complex Enigma Code that allowed the Germans to communicate strategically and completely undetected by the Allies.
Needless to say, Turing’s discovery saved hundreds of thousands of lives.
Turing, with the support and financing of Winston Churchill, surrounded himself with a think tank of some of Great Britain’s most brilliant minds which ultimately achieved the breakthrough.
And yes, a woman became part of Turing’s inner circle. She’s portrayed by Keira Knightley.
But as Hollywood might have had it, this pairing did not lead into a relationship. You see Alan Turing was gay.
Fast forward to 1952 when British authorities entered the home of this war hero and arrested Turing on charges of “gross indecency” as homosexual acts were illegal in England at the time.
Turing was convicted and committed suicide in obscurity at age 42.
Little did officials know that they had actually incriminated one of their country’s great heroes who so famously led his motley group of linguists, chess champions and intelligence scholars during England’s darkest hours.
In 2009, Prime Minister Gordon Brown officially apologized for his nation’s appalling treatment of this genius and Queen Elizabeth issued a posthumous pardon to Mr. Turing.
So how DID Turing ultimately crack the Enigma code?
That’s for you to discover in THE IMITATION GAME.
Suffice it to say Turing is credited today for designing the world’s first computer.
Benedict Cumberbatch is nominated for BEST ACTOR (Drama) for THE IMITATION GAME while Keira Knightley received a BEST SUPPORTING nomination for her performance in the film.
My grade: B.
(Reviewed at Glenwood Arts Theatre)
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Most certainly one of the saddest stories in British history.
One of Britain’s greatest heroes.
My hat is off to a man of singular ability, a patriot and a hero that finally gets his story told.
I will see this movie.
🙂
Finally. Here’s a movie worth watching while sitting in a dark theatre with a bunch of annoying strangers. The acting was fantastic.
However, being a history Nazi, I was a little disjointed by historical errors. (There’s no White-Out for typewritten errors in 1951) for example.
Overall, the acting, particularly by Benedict Cumberbatch more than made up for those slights.