Mr. Turner (2015)
February 20, 2015 - This year’s Oscar nominations contain three (!) biopics about British geniuses: Mr. Turner, The Imitation Game, andThe Theory of Everything. The one that isn’t up for best picture just might be the best.
Both The Imitation Game and The Theory of Everything are anchored by strong lead performances, by Benedict Cumberbatch and Eddie Redmayne. But both films can be seen as depicting their protagonists’ social and physical challenges — not to mention towering intellectual accomplishments — as plot points on the road to satisfying, crowd-pleasing and, in the case of The Imitation Game, emotionally (and perhaps historically) dishonest conclusions.