Take It as a Tale of an Amazing Man, Even Though it May Have Some Suspect History

Rating: 9/10 (5 February 2015)

This is the story of Allen Turing, who really existed. He is the mathematical genius who was engaged to try to break the German code "Enigma" during World War II. He is autistic and humorless, totally insensitive, with no regard for social interaction. He is driven by the task at hand and feels other things are superfluous. He is also under the gun from a commandeer who he insulted and who would love to be rid of him. Had his colleagues not reluctantly come to his aid when he was under attack, he would never have been able to do the work he did. He has one other problem. He is homosexual and at this time this is illegal and would get him drummed out of service and probably imprisoned. There are flashbacks of his youth, made horrible by his peers. It shows his relationship with Christopher, a boy whom he loves, the one person who gives him his due and his respect. Something terrible occurs after a school vacation, and Alan is left alone. The acting is quite incredible. Benedict Cumberbatch is turning into a major actor (to the chagrin of the "Sherlock" fans). Keira Knightly does a nice job as the female foil, who even agrees to marriage with Alan (although it is utterly doomed by his own admission). One of the stars is an amazing computer that Alan puts his life and heart into, designed to break the aforementioned code. It spins and clicks. For many, this was the first real modern computer (for all you abacus fans, I don't mean to be disrespectful). This is the story of another genius (keep in mind the current film about Stephen Hawking) who experiences heartbreak at every turn, whose peers hate but tolerate him. It's the story of a society that devalues a man because of the way he was born, that dismisses his accomplishments. There are two really emotional scenes. One is when he throws himself in front of his computer (which is named after his friend Christopher) as the military Philistines start to destroy it. And a scene with the headmaster of his school when Alan must say he barely knew the boy whom he loved. See this. One of the best films of 2014.