5 Screenwriting Lessons – The Imitation Game

Who Wrote It?

The Imitation Game was written by Graham Moore, and based on the book Alan Turing: The Enigma, written by Andrew Hodges.

How Long is It?

The Imitation Game is 114 minutes long, including credits.

What’s It About?

The Imitation Game tells the story of Alan Turing (played by Benedict Cumberbatch), a gifted mathematician who gained a job as a codebreaker during the Second World War. Hired to decrypt messages sent by the Germans using the Enigma coding machine, he annoys his superiors with his anti-social manner, but soon comes up with an elaborate machine to crack the Enigma code. The film also deals with Turing’s homosexuality, illegal in Britain during his lifetime, his ill-fated relationship with fellow code breaker Joan Clarke (played by Kiera Knightley), his arrest for “Gross indecency” in 1952, and his eventual suicide.

5 Screenwriting Lessons- The Imitation Game

(The Following May Contain Spoilers)

Use Flashbacks and Flash-forwards – The Imitation Game begins in 1952, with police responding to the break-in that would expose Turing’s sexuality and lead to his arrest. The initial meeting is full of foreshadowing that sets up Turing’s downfall. When the detectives investigating the case first see him, he is cleaning up poisonous chemicals. As well as foreshadowing his suicide, which is not depicted in the film itself, it sets up Turing’s awkward and unsociable nature, which create as many obstacles for him as his homosexuality does. The subsequent interrogation of Turing provides a framing device for his narration. The detective conducting it, Detective Nock, serves as a stand-in for the audience, as he listens to the narration and gains an increased understanding of Turing as a person. This technique is used to emphasise the secrecy involved in Turing’s life, as the story he tells was known only to those directly involved at the time. In recent years, the tale has become more familiar, but the depiction of a time when it wasn’t highlights the levels of mystery that defined both Turing and the project in which he was involved.

As well as the scenes set after the war, there are also a number of flashbacks to Turing’s past as a student at a boarding-school. These serve to develop his character in a number of ways. He is implied to have Asperger’s syndrome or a similar condition, which manifests itself in his obsession with separating peas and carrots in his school dinner. This leads to him being mercilessly bullied by a number of fellow students, and sets up the fact that he is a misfit who nobody is able to understand. The flashbacks also depicts his friendship with, and growing attraction towards, Christopher, an older student who introduces him to the world of cryptanalysis. This ensures that he is a more relatable protagonist, and provides motivation for his actions throughout the rest of the film.

If A Line of Dialogue is Significant, Echo It Later - There are a number of instances in the film where a minor detail or exchange is used again later to emphasise its effect. Some of these are comedic in nature. For example, when Turing is hard at work designing his decryption machine, he refuses a request to go out for lunch, claiming that he dislikes sandwiches. Later, one of his fellow codebreakers steals a sandwich from him, citing this earlier comment when doing so. Though the sequence is entirely humorous, it demonstrates that Turing’s colleagues are ambivalent in their opinions of him. They accept his skills, but still regard him as a loner and therefore treat him in a disrespectful manner. This indicates that Turing is yet to fully win the approval of his team, and provides a personal motive for Turing to succeed, in addition to the wider need to save Britain.

However, the majority of echoes in the story are far more direct. One significant line is “Sometimes it is the people no one imagines anything of who do the things no one can imagine.” This is used three times in the movie. It is first used Christopher, then Turing himself, and finally Joan in the last scene. This reflects and reinforces the message of the movie, which is that the Second World War was not won on the battlefield, but by an introverted mathematician who was “agnostic” towards violence. The contrast between Turing’s anonymous nature and his highly valuable contribution is inherently fascinating, and this is at the heart of both the quote and the movie itself.

Protagonists Don’t Have to be Likeable – The film places a significant amount of focus on Alan Turing’s flaws. He was anti-social, overconfident, obtuse and lacking inhibition. These traits are made particularly apparent in his interview with Commander Denniston, the head of Britain’s Government Code and Cipher School, the organisation for which Turing worked. For example, he tells Dennison “You would need me a lot more than I need you.” The purpose of an interview is usually to win over the person conducting it, but Turing’s blunt comments show that he regards himself as being superior to Dennison, which is hardly an endearing statement to make in such a serious context. However, because Turing’s judgements turned out to be correct, the audience are on his side, because they are aware that he will be an essential member of the team and hope Denniston will recognise this. Turing’s confidence in his abilities make him a compelling character, and this ensures that the audience more inclined to follow him and see what effects his positive and negative characteristics have on his success.

Use the Period – The majority of the film takes place during the Second World War, and this creates a significant degree of tension. The extent of the threat posed by the Germans and their apparent invulnerability makes Turing and the codebreakers seem like underdogs, and this is highlighted through the menacing depiction of German ships and planes advancing on their enemies. Furthermore, they represented a more immediate threat through “The Blitz”, their bombing campaign against British cities. The attacks are depicted in a quick montage which focuses on the effect that they had on the ordinary British public. This conveys how destructive the conflict was and raises the stakes – If Turing and his team don’t succeed, Britain might be destroyed. Due to the distance between the codebreakers, based in the country estate Bletchley Park, and the battlefields on which the war was fought, the decision to show the impact of the fighting on those directly involved creates an increased sense of urgency, and this is what forces the team at Bletchley Park to work together in order to find the secret behind the Enigma machine as quickly as they can.

The German’s apparent dominance soon becomes an advantage for Turing, but this generates an ethical dilemma. After he succeeds in cracking the Enigma machine, the British now have a complete understanding of German strategy throughout the world. However, Turing realises that if this advantage is revealed, it would undo all the progress he has made. Therefore, he chooses not to warn the British government about an impending attack on a ship.  Even though one of his fellow codebreakers has a brother on board the doomed vessel, Turing stands by his decision. Although this is a pretty unlikely coincidence, it does highlight the effects that concealing all knowledge of German activities had. Because the depiction of the code breaking process omits almost all developments after Turing’s breakthrough, the story needs to find another way of demonstrating the obstacles the codebreakers faced from this point, and highlighting the problems generated by the newfound insight into German activities provides a striking way of doing this.

Relationships are Key – The story of the Imitation Game is structured around Turing’s relationship with Clarke. The first act ends with Turing inviting her to join the codebreakers at Bletchley Park, his decision to propose to her occurs at the midpoint of the story, and the second act ends with the revelation of his sexuality.  This is important because whilst the cracking of Enigma was a significant event, the majority of the process saw Turing use skills that he already possessed, namely his tenacity and mathematical knowledge. In contrast, his relationship with Joan forces him to change as a character and develop a close relationship with another person – his inability to do so is at the centre of his personality. This growth not only makes him into a more developed character, it enables him to enjoy greater success. For all his prowess as a mathematician, it is being able to listen to others provides Turing with the information needed to solve the German code.  Biographical dramas can risk emphasising facts over character, and by focusing on Turing’s inability to interact with his team, the script creates a story that can be applied to any time or place, but is enhanced by the people and events involved.

Verdict

The Imitation Game succeeds as a biopic because it focuses on characters instead of events. The Second World War is kept firmly in the background, and the focus in in Alan Turing himself. He is a highly flawed character, but has enough relatable traits to make him a protagonist worth rooting for. The period is well depicted, and the flashbacks and flash forwards are incorporated into the story effectively. The dialogue is strong, and in spite of the lack of action, the various conflicts Turing and other characters face are engaging. The screenplay provides a solid foundation for a talented cast and crew, and this is the main reason why the film is a prominent contender in this years’ awards season.