From the first voice over dialog in The Imitation Game, the whole tone of the movie is set. There is urgency, intrigue and a very unique main character. The urgency is maintained throughout with really great pacing and tight story-telling. The intrigue is satisfying as you settle in to watch the protagonist overcome his own limitations in order to do his very large part in defeating the Nazis. And the unique main character is played by Benedict Cumberbatch whose performance is absolutely top notch.
This movie is so clever, filled with beautiful lines of dialog, wonderful story structure and scenes that succinctly reveal character. I was a big fan of the writing by Graham Moore, whose picture on imdb suggests he is about 17 years old. What is up with that?
The directing here was more traditional and straightforward than in some of the other Best Picture nominees. But for all that, it was expertly carried out. I'm not one to fault a film maker for failing to be flashy.
Of course for those of you already familiar with the story, you know there is tragedy awaiting poor Alan Turing. I actually left this film more depressed than Selma, which surprised me. This was a really great film and I would like to formally apologize to it for the reaction I had to the trailer, which was, "Another Bletchley Park drama? I already saw Enigma, I don't need to see this." I was wrong. I did need to see The Imitation Game. And perhaps you do, too.
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