Oscars 2015: Ranking The Best Picture Nominees From Worst To Best

6. The Imitation Game

Back when the awards season was on the horizon, The Imitation Game was a firm favourite. Benedict Cumberbatch was a lock in for Best Actor and the movie would prove to be a strong contender in other serious categories. And while it certainly amassed a nice number of nominations, its chance of success are now rather low, a film destined to go down in history as an "also ran". This drifting down the ranks could easily be excused by much stronger candidates racing to the fore, but it likely also has something to do with that the film isn't all that remarkable, never quite able to escape its Oscar baiting origins. Oh sure, in many ways The Imitation Game is a cut above other recent bait-y prestige picks. The presentation of the cracking of Enigma as an old-school spy thriller makes for an engaging second act, while Cumberbatch is convincing as Alan Turing, even if every personality divergence from Sherlock merely pushes him closer to Sheldon Cooper. What really stops The Imitation Game being an all round package is how it botches the ending. Although the film ostensibly about his actions in World War II, Morten Tyldum chose to broaden the scope and encapsulate all of Turing's life, all the way up to his outing as a homosexual, chemical castration and suicide, yet doesn't seem at all concerned with exploring the tragedy with anything more than a fleeting mention - the suicide, which could have been Cumberbatch's Oscar moment, is flippantly revealed in some on-screen text.