Thoughts on The Imitation Game

On the 11^th of February, we went to watch this movie called ‘The Imitation Game’, as a part of our Theory assignment. Let me start by saying that no I am not here to write a review on the movie, you can google it if you may. I am here to actually express my own perspective on the movie.

So the only thing I knew about the movie before going to watch it was that the lead role is played by Benedict Cumberbatch! That was enough reason for me to look forward to this movie.

As the movie started I committed to Cumberbatch’s very first words:

“What I will need from you now is a commitment. You will listen closely, and you will not judge me until I am finished. If you cannot commit to this, then please leave the room. But if you choose to stay, remember you chose to be here. What happens from this moment forward is not my responsibility. It's yours. Pay attention.”

Anyways keeping my fangirling aside, let’s move on. From the beginning to the very end of the movie my eyes were glued to the screen. It was that much good. The plot, the screenplay, the cast everything was just right for the ambience. The plot was basically during the World War 2 with a bit flashback of the lead Alan Turing’s childhood. And it is to my ignorance that I did not know until the movie finished, that it was actually based on a true story. The storyline was as you all know mainly on how Alan’s machine was able to defeat Enigma, a creation of Nazis and stop the world war by a margin of 2 years. As much as I found the journey interesting, there were also some other issues in the story which caught my attention.

The fact that women that time were not really considered to be working side by side with men was obviously one of them. And even if some did, they were to always behave politely and make sure people like them. They did not have the pleasure to always speak their mind or do what they want. Also a single woman working alone alongside men was a great issue for the parents and society too. For me it was something to ponder about. Even though we have come a long way in terms of equal rights, we women still face discrimination in corporate life.

Another main issue of the movie was Alan’s homosexuality. Homosexuality during that time was considered as a sin and people were highly punished for it. Poor Alan’s decease was due to this as well. I am not going to go into deep discussion about homosexuality. Maybe he was born with it, maybe he chose it. Who am I to judge?  I cannot help but think that if Alan Turing was born on a different era, maybe this world could see more of his brilliance.

Last but definitely not the least, the story succeeded to show how bullying can make a person’s life upside down. In my opinion, Alan might not have turned into the socially awkward person that the movie portrayed, if it was not because of the constant bullying he had to endure during his childhood. Being different is not a sin, and another person’s weakness does not give us the right to mock his life and make his living more miserable.

So, these were some of my insights on the movie. But overall I enjoyed the movie thoroughly. It was full of emotion, drama, thriller, a bit of comedy through witty dialogues and left me with some thoughts to ponder about.