ENIGMA - not Special Edition!
Added 11/1/2009
I ordered the Special Edition. The vendor sent me the regular edition. I retuned it and the vendor gave me a full refund.
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Unique Spy Story Set in Bletchley Park
Added 8/17/2009
"Enigma" as a spy story is as the title of my post states, truly unique. This is because the story's protagonist, Tom Jericho (played by Dougray Scott) is not a World War II version of James Bond engaging in gunfights with the Gestapo and downing vodka martinis and bedding starlets in his down time. No, Jericho is a cryptanalyst, a codebreaker, and I don't think such an individual has ever been the hero of a suspenseful tale such as this. And the spy story is set at Bletchley Park, the epicenter of the British codebreaking effort during World War II. Moreover, Jericho is played as a brilliant but shy and fragile man who fell so head over heels in love with the mysterious Claire (played by Saffron Burrows) that he had a nervous breakdown when she abruptly dumped him.
Although the spy story is fictional, the plot (based on the novel "Enigma" is deeply rooted in the actual history of the effort to break into the Germans' codes. Before Jericho had his collapse, the British were able to read the Germans' U-Boat code, but shortly after he was packed off to Oxbridge to recuperate, the Germans abruptly changed their codes...almost as if someone had warned them that they were being broken.
It's Jericho's official task to help break "Shark," the U-Boat code, before Allied convoys sail into harm's way. But Jericho has another personal mission, to find out what happened to Claire, who has mysteriously disappeared...leaving behind clues that she was involved with whoever might have warned the Germans that their codes were being broken.
To use a British expression, the story is "ripping good stuff." As someone who has read the novel as well, the movie does an excellent job bringing the story to life. Scott possibly is a little too good looking to play the anxious, obsessive academic that is Tom Jericho, but that's a minor quibble. Kate Winslet does a very fine job as Hester Wallace, Claire's roommate. As one of her fans, I only wish she had more screen time. This being said, I was pleased that the filmmakers upgraded her relationship to Jericho in the novel from being just a helpmate to being an eventual love interest herself (and they made clever use of the fact that Kate Winslet was pregnant during the film and was beginning to show...concealing it until the end of story where we are left with the clear impression that Tom and Hester had gotten married and were expecting their first child by the time the story ended.
Enigma
So to sum up: "Enigma" is a great movie. The cast and story is excellent and the production values are superb (they even filmed it on the grounds of Bletchley). But it does require the viewer to think a bit.
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Based on a true story, apparently, the plot is a bit twisted, but the acting is great. An exciting WWII yarn that could have been shorter, but then that's true of many films. It's a film I want to see again, in any case, partly to help figure out all the plot elements that weren't clear.
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This film is a valuable addition to anyone building a library of excellent acting, writing, and directing. Its historical setting, interesting characters, and believable conclusion results in a film worth seeing over and over again. It was good to know how many people found "Enigma" to be a great contribution to film archives.
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2 stars out of 4
Added 12/18/2008
The Bottom Line:
A rather tepid thriller that wastes a quietly interesting performance by Kate Winslet, Enigma follows a bored Dougray Scott through a pedestrian series of events--look elsewhere.
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