Topic: The Imitation Game: Story and Making

- Preeti Nataraj
Alan Turing's time as the head code-breaker at Bletchley Park during World War II is depicted
in the film The Imitation Game. Britain is currently at war with Germany, and his efforts
translating German naval dispatches helped cut the war's duration by two years. The movie
is well-paced and structured, with a traditional thriller feel to it. The director effortlessly moves
the plot forward, and in less than two hours, he packs his film with facts and a gripping sense
of the conflict. The first remarks spoken by Alan Turing in the film are authoritative and
disdainful. This simply reinforces his aversion to establishing "friends" or even viewing his
colleagues through the same perspective, dismissing any contributions and setting out alone.
A few moments in the film, combined with the melancholy tone, provide a deeper meaning,
similar to an ash tray left on the table that pulls you in and spirals inwards. There are
shots/missiles heard as the film zooms in on one individual tackling Alan Turing's crossword
problem, which he had set up to hire more cryptographers and mathematicians. "Only a
machine, not a person, can defeat a machine," Alan Turing said of the German machine. The
film is a dramatization of Alan Turing's personal life, but it's more of an observation that all of
his times with Chistopher and set in light have very clear connections. When he permits Joan
Clarke to accompany him and be his companion, the only other light shines through.
Throughout the film, there are various checks that blame Alan only because he is guarded
and not as honest as the others.
Alan's war with society, Alan's battle with Germany (for Britain), and Alan's battle with the
rest of the authorities who refuse to help him, the movie progresses with this in mind. They
come to the realisation that they can win the war at this point, and the only German they
need to know is "Heil Hitler." Furthermore, a set of statistics was devised that decided which
step to make when so that the secret of decoding Enigma could be kept hidden for the next
50 years or so. Winning the war is crucial, but keeping the decoding secret so that the
Germans do not modify their communication networks is much more difficult.
After being forced to undergo hormonal therapy or be separated from 'Christopher' again,
Alan Turing committed suicide a few years later.