Enigma - The Movie

Production Year: 2001 - Drama - Director: Michael Apted - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over more

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Set in England during World War II, Michael Apted's ENIGMA follows bookish code-breaker Tom Jericho (Dougray Scott) through a whirlwind love affair with Claire Romilly (Saffron...
more...Burrows), a seductive blonde clerk, and his subsequent recovery from a mental breakdown caused by the relationship. As Tom begins to pick up the pieces of his sanity, he is reinstated by his former employers at Bletchley Park, a secret agency that intercepts transmissions from German U-boats and decodes them for use in the Allied cause. When a suave government agent (Jeremy Northam) investigates Bletchley in search of a suspected spy and the now-missing Claire, Tom takes matters into his own hands and enlists the help of Claire's roommate, the seemingly prim Hester Wallace (Kate Winslet). Together Tom and Hester begin to unravel a mystery that goes extends across continents and allegiances.
Apted's WWII thriller, based on the novel by Robert Harris and screenplay by Tom Stoppard, is a well-crafted period piece that successfully transports the audience to 1940s Britain. Scott and Winslet are compelling in their roles as intellectuals forced into action, and Northam exudes a rakish charm during his appearances. The film's secret weapon, however, is the plot, which gets more and more intriguing as the story progresses. In the end, even the most astute viewers will be surprised by ENIGMA's finale.

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Enigma - The Movie

A review by gander on Enigma DVD
September 30th, 2001

Author's product rating: Enigma DVD - rated by gander

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Good
Characters / Performances	Good
Special Effects	Standard
How does it compare to similar films?	Good

Advantages:	Nice watchable film, little unsuitable language
Disadvantages:	watch it and see - none that I noticed .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Enigma (directed by Michael Apted) has Tom Jericho (Dougray Scott) returned to Bletchley Park after a nervous breakdown to try and break secret German codes after they were suddenly changed and became undecipherable. His girl-friend Claire (Saffron Burrows) had dissapeared and along with her room - mate Hester (Kate Winslet) start looking for her.
To crack the codes it requires a convoy of much needed goods to steer directly into the path of waiting German u-boats, so that they can get the position and course of the convoy (which those in Bletchley Park already know) from German radio messages and if they get enough of them, they can use this to decipher the new codes, which they eventually do, but at the cost of a number of ships and lives.

There is also the problem of a traitorin Bletchley Park who has to be discovered, and the hunt for the elusive Claire who is suspected to have been murdered. There is a car chase (not quite like the one in "Bullet", but passable) and the film finishes where all is revealed (of course). Its an enjoyable film but probably won't become a classic war film (like Casablanca), but with Kate Winslet in it who cares anyway?, (Or dougray Scott for the girls?).

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Soundtrack	Good
How does it compare to others by the same director?	Satisfactory
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	Enigma [2001] Codebreaking is an inherently fascinating but not especially cinematic endeavour, which is ... more whyEnigmaspices up the true story of Bletchley Park and its eclectic group of Nazi code-cracking geniuses with some fictional romance and intrigue. Dougray Scott...	£ 3.93		Postage & Packaging: £1.24 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...	Visit Shop > Amazon Marketplace
	Enigma [2001] Codebreaking is an inherently fascinating but not especially cinematic endeavour, which is ... more whyEnigmaspices up the true story of Bletchley Park and its eclectic group of Nazi code-cracking geniuses with some fictional romance and intrigue. Dougray Scott...	£ 3.98		Postage & Packaging: £1.46 Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...	Visit Shop > Amazon.co.uk

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