The Imitation Game (2014)

Jack and I loved this true story of Alan Turing, the mathematician who cracked the Germans' Enigma code to help win WWII. Benedict Cumberbatch's performance is outstanding as the slightly Asperger-y, closeted gay Brit (homosexuality was a crime until 1967 in the United Kingdom, 1980 in Scotland, and 1982 in Northern Ireland). Cumberbatch, last blogged in 12 Years a Slave, has been racking up deserved nominations (along with others of the filmmakers), and will almost certainly be Oscar-nominated as well. Matthew Goode (after I mentioned him in Belle he became a series regular in The Good Wife), Keira Knightley (most recently in these pages in Laggies), and Mark Strong (last in Before I Go to Sleep) are all powerful as two members of the code breaking team and one of the organizers, respectively. Matthew Beard has a good scene as the youngest member of the team and Charles Dance (I haven't seen much of his many credits but liked White Mischief (1987), Alien 3 (1992), Last Action Hero (1993), Hilary and Jackie (1998), Gosford Park (2001), and Swimming Pool (2003)) gets a special "with Charles Dance" credit as the Commander. And for us Masterpiece Theatre regulars, you'll see Allen Leech (Tom Branson in Downton Abbey) and Tom Goodman-Hill (Mr. Grove in Mr. Selfridge) as another member of the wartime team and the 1952 constable. Oh, and Alex Lawther is remarkable as the teenaged Turing.

This is impressive work, especially for Norwegian director Morten Tyldum, in his English-language debut, and Graham Moore's feature screenwriting debut (after two shorts and co-writing a TV episode), adapting the book Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges. Though the ending is sad, there are a few laughs here and there.

We're big fans of period details, and this production design team does not disappoint. Apparently the machine, a fore-runner of all computers, was made a bit more cinematic and isn't an exact replica. Another fascinating bit of trivia is that Cumberbatch and Turing were actually related--17th cousins.

The lovely and sometimes urgent music by the prolific Alexandre Desplat (most recently scored The Grand Budapest Hotel) can be streamed in its 51 minute entirety from this link.

Rotten Tomatoes' critics, averaging 90% and its audiences at 95, are on the same page as we are, for a change. Be sure to see this before the Oscars!