Imitation Game (Morten Tyldum) - 2014

Benedict Cumberbatch and company finally reveal the story of Alan Turing and his group of British geniuses who broke the Nazi code during World War II.  The story was classified for over 50 years.  Director Tyldum takes us back to 1939 into war weary England when it seemed that nothing could stop Hitler's expansion.  Turing overcame numerous obstacles to develop an analog computer that became a precursor to the machines that rule our lives in the modern world.  Keira Knightly is the refreshing woman in the group who helps the socially-inept Turing to gain the confidence of the others.  To the credit of the director and the production company, Turing's story is followed beyond the end of the war to his troubles with homophobic authorities who tormented him until his early end.  Experts believe that this one awkward person may have saved the lives of 14 million people in Europe.  [JAM 2/18/2015]