Our Movie Review: The Imitation Game (2014)

Why we watched it: Oscar nominations

Our rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Our review: I was a bit reluctant to see this movie, as I’d read reviews that indicated the movie downplayed Turing’s homosexuality. I was also not sure how this movie would cover the sad, tragic ending to his life. After seeing the movie, I can appreciate the positive responses to it. Cumberbatch, as usual, creates an engaging character, even thought Turing is a portrayed as arrogant and unable to create social connections with others. The structure of the film is effective, weaving Turing’s WWII experiences with his later arrest for homosexuality. Criticisms that the film could have been stronger in it’s cultural critique of British sodomy laws are appropriate, although I think that would have taken the film away from its core, which is Turing’s success with decoding Nazi communications. The supporting cast is good, but the core is Cumberbatch. As with Eddie Redmayne with The Theory of Everything, Cumberbatch brings us into this film and into Turing’s life.