beautiful performance by Benedict Cumberbatch

Rating: 10/10 (26 December 2014)

Benedict Cumberbatch is codebreaker Alan Turing in "The Imitation Game," a 2014 film based on the true story of Alan Turing, a mathematical genius and the father of the modern computer.
The first review on this site complained that the movie is historically inaccurate. Most biopics and films about famous events are historically inaccurate. Films say, "Based on a true story," not "an absolute factual true story." Events are moved or telescoped, characters are combined, etc. because it's a movie, not a book that lists facts. The idea is to become interested in the subject and go home and read about it.
Detractors of this film, some of whom haven't seen it, state over and over that the Poles broke the Enigma code. This has nothing to do with the movie. The Poles broke the code, but NO ONE HAD EVER BROKEN THE German NAVAL CODE. Turing built his machine -- which looked like the one in the film, by the way, to break that code. You'll notice that everything discussed had to do with vessels, convoys, ships, etc.
"The Imitation Game" is not about a machine. Also World War II, being one of our larger wars, was certainly not won by one man, but by the work of many, including the early work of the Poles, who are honored at Bletchley Park just as Alan Turing is honored.
This is the story of literally a tortured genius, isolated, very much in his own head, antisocial, but a man who believed in his own abilities. He goes to work trying to break the German code; the codes are reset daily, which means if you can't break the code in a day, all your work is for nothing, and the next day, you start over. The idea was to get the code broken in a matter of minutes instead of hours using the machine.
Turing is not easily accepted by his coworkers (Matthew Goode, Allen Leech, Matthew Beard) but gets along well with Joan (Keira Knightley), who urges him to be a little friendlier because "you're going to need "all the help you can get." They have to fight to continue their work, since it's not happening fast enough for the government.
It's been said Benedict Cumberbatch plays the role of a brilliant eccentric well, but this character is the complete opposite of Sherlock, though their minds might work similarly. It's a passionate, intense performance. He is perfect as the socially inept Turing, a true nerd, a bullied schoolboy who had but one friend growing up. His portrayal is heartbreaking.
Let's hope we've improved as a people and, because of sexual proclivities are less likely to crucify someone who has made a tremendous contribution to the world. Genius takes many forms, and as Turing's friend Christopher says, "Sometimes it is the people no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine."