Review + Response: The Imitation Game

Okay, okay... I know that this film has been out for weeks so it's a little late for a review but I'd not written one for a while and I had some thoughts on the film that I wanted to share.

The Imitation Game had been recommended to me so many times in the past few weeks so I had to carve out time to see it. As a member of the LGBTQ community I had to see it. I loved how naturally they depicted Turing's sexuality without making it a huge plot point, it was definitely treated as a respectful sub plot. I felt things were a little rushed and I would have really liked them to tastefully depict Turing's suicide as it remains one of the most beautiful and poetic suicides I've ever heard of.

This was a real character piece and Cumberbatch most definitely stole the spotlight. His portrayal of Alan Turing was strong, possibly his strongest yet. The rest of the film, however, fell a bit flat. We went through this whole journey of Turing joining the team and building a machine and yes, suddenly it works. We see it working and then are thrown a brief bit of information about how they used the information before Turing, in a most blasé fashion, tells us how the war dragged on for two years and was over. This was incredibly anti-climactic. Were it not for the strength of Benedict Cumberbatch and his portrayal of Alan Turing, this film would have fallen flat because the plot moves so hurriedly and without care for dramatic tension. Things are not adequately brought to a dramatic ground. Cumberbatch brings the laughs and the tears and really makes you feel. The rest of the cast give a decent enough performance (with Keira Knightley playing Keira Knightley as per usual) but this feels like a good enough film that certainly entertained. I feel that this could call for an Oscar nomination for Cumberbatch, that's for sure...

The Fault In Our Stars: Review + Response (Movie)

Alrighty: this is a review and I am warning you. THERE WILL BE SPOILERS.
If you have NOT seen the film and do not want spoilers then please do not read anything beyond this sentence.

I always get anxious when a big hype is created around a film because sometimes the hype sets up far too many expectations. I therefore entered this film with that sense of hype. I began to worry: will I be disappointed by a film I've looked forward to for so long? I was such a fan of the book. In fact, at one point, I had four (yes, four) copies of the book in my tiny apartment... and a signed poster... and a TFIOS shirt. I can happily say that I was very pleased with how the film turned out.

 This film got to me; in fact I first cried within thirty seconds of the film starting as a single tear peeked through my eye as I realised I'd just signed up for a rollercoaster that only goes up... before plummeting down. Some scenes were cut out and other scenes didn't translate well to screen in the same way they translated on paper. What must be said, though, is that it was very faithful to the book. It's refreshing to see film-makers respecting the original source material. The eulogy scene was utterly heart breaking. If I had any say, I'd want to see Ansel Elgort get an Oscar nomination for his performance. The gas station scene was so utterly heart breaking and, yes, I started crying then too. It was perfect in the aim of depicting cancer not as a graceful struggle, but as a painful, awful disease that ruins lives. The night of the broken trophies scene managed to make the entire audience laugh. It was pitched and performed so perfectly. What I love about the book is that it's a romance, yes, but it reminds us that love happens regardless of circumstance. It reminds us that even the young get sick and have to live through something as horrible as cancer. The film will hopefully reach so many that haven't read the book and hopefully it will really raise cancer awareness and support. I know that a lot of people living with cancer have appreciated some sort of on screen representation. This film is powerful stuff and a real amuse bouche before all of the traditional summer blockbusters roll in. This is a feel-good/feel-sad indie flick that is not to be missed.

Song of the Day: Pennies from Heaven by Billie Holiday

Something to relax to for today.

Enjoy,