Retro Review: The Imitation Game

Writer's Note: In honor of the underrated actress Keira Knightley's birthday, here's a look back at the excellent The Imitation Game. This article was originally published on Facebook on June 3rd, 2015.

The Imitation Game is the true story of mathematician Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch), who led a group of code-breakers trying to decode German missives sent during WWII. Joining him is Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley), who would later become his fiancee; and his boss is played by Charles Dance, of Game of Thrones fame.

Mark Strong, who's been in a lot of the movies I've watched lately, completely randomly (Welcome to the Punch, Anna, Kingsmen, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) also crops up as a secret agent that helps Turing deceive his superiors when it becomes necessary.

In the process of trying to decode things, Turing essentially creates a machine that would become the basis of the very thing I'm posting on: the computer- and he also comes up with what would eventually become known as the "Turing Test," which is used to determine a human from a computer- think that test in Blade Runner.

Also of note is that Turing was a homosexual at a time when that was a big no-no, and only fairly recently got the credit he deserved for his landmark work, having until then being essentially completely ostracized by the very government that he helped win the war and save countless lives for. Sad but true.

As such, as impressive as his achievements were, his life does end on a tragic note, which does temper things a bit in terms of the movie's overall feel. Not that I'm suggesting that the film should have whitewashed anything, mind you, just that there's no getting around what a bummer it is that a guy who essentially changed the world (and in more than one way) didn't get any credit for it until AFTER he died.

The cast is great across the board, and I'm becoming more and more impressed with Cumberbatch the more I see of his work. (Before recently, I had only seen him in the second Star Trek movie.) 

I'm contemplating checking out his take on Sherlock next, having been an Elementary watcher before and not having seen his variation on the famed Sherlock Holmes character as of yet. And the more I see of Mark Strong, the more I'm convinced he's one of the all-around best actors out there at the moment.

And, as ever, Keira Knightley radiates thoughtfulness and intelligence that perfectly complements Cumberbatch and, by extension, Turing's "beautiful mind." In a way, despite her success, she's still kind of underrated as an actress- be sure to take a look at David Cronenberg's wily A Dangerous Mind, if you haven't already- she's utterly fantastic in it.

If this material interests you in the slightest, I can't imagine you'll be disappointed. It's the true-life tale of a brilliant, under-recognized man whose story deserves to be told. By all means, check it out!