Rating: 
Summary: Enigma
Review: It was gripping right from the start it was so true to the spirit that made England what it is. Needless to say I do not think that I would be so brave as those who gave their lives for their country like thay did. The pictures of blechley and how thay managed to crack the code were supurb miss this film at your peril, it will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Shaun Warburton (from England)
Rating:
Summary: The Joy of Enigma
Review: I have seen the most fantastic movie. Not since the 'Matrix' have I seen something worth raving. Michael Apt directed the movie with the screenplay written by the brilliant Tom Stoppard, 'Enigma'. It is based upon the novel by a Robert Harris. After seeing this movie, I am inspired to obtain a copy and read it. So what made the movie so great. Well, from the start is the film scored which is done by one of two truly great movie composers still living -- John Barry. I am rather proud of myself for recognising who it was before the credits were displayed at the film's end. The music was absolutely delicious with a perfect blend of the nostalgic and of the romantic to accompany the hero's mood and memories. Although Barry quotes from himself quite a bit, the end result worked. (Have a listen to the incidental music to the James Bond movies 'Octopussy' and 'Moonraker' and the main love theme from 'Somewhere In Time.')
So from the start of the movie, I was attracted to the moving film score. He should win another Academy Oscar for that. (A bit better than 'Born Free'.)
Another major joy was is the wonderful lush cinematography which effectively immerses one into the film. Sometimes, I feel I could just reach out and touch the Claire's hair or feel the warm air while being assuaged by the sensual sounds of Vaughn Williams' 'Dives and Lazarus'. Ok, the movie itself is about the codebreakers of Bletchley Park, (Station X) or rather focuses upon one top codebreaker in particular. He supposed to be some variant upon Alan Turing sans the androphiliac disposition. It is a mystery surrounding what may be a new Enigma (pun intended). Attempting to be brief and without disclosing too much, the story focuses upon the return of a top codebreaker who suffered a mental (or nervous) breakdown -- NOT from doing too much maths (thank God, not another 'Beautiful Mind' or 'Proof'!) -- but from the source that destroys all men's minds -- affection for a woman who may have discovered another mystery associated with apparently a new Enigma that the Nazis had developed. Weaved into the linearity of the story are flashback memories of the woman who effected the lives of everyone who knew her (or thought they knew her). My two marks against the film are on principle grounds.
(1) If you wanted to talk about a brilliant mathematician who was very instrumental in decoding the Nazis' Enigma a la Alan Turing, please use another person who is not suppose to be him. I understand that, perhaps, to make this movie have a mass appeal it may help to adopt a heterosexual character as the centre of the story. I understand that most are not interested in romantic stories of a homoerotic content. But the fictional character that was supposed to be him was a mere ersatz for the real person whose life and character is worth a cinematic portrait. (Plug for Derek Jacobi's in 'Breaking the Code'.)
(2) For a story that used Bletchley Park and the people there as the milieu for the story, I, personally, would have preferred more scenes illustrating the personalities of the codebreakers and the deciphering process itself. (Speaking as a mathematician and a great admirer of Turing himself, I prefer more scenes that would focus upon the technical aspect of the decoding and the minds that perform that prodigious task. Getting over the fact that this movie lacked a true Alan Turing, not a serious defect (do not mind me), I allowed myself to be absorbed into the world presented to me on screen. Go see this film! One would be remiss in not seeing such a great work.
Rating:
Summary: Great Film
Review: Enigma was very exciting. It was a thinking persons film, yet filled with action, mystery and romance.
Saffron Burrows is beautiful and Dougray Scott and Jeremy Northum do a fantastic job. Plus the cinematograhy was spectacular!
I highly recommend this film.
Rating:
Summary: No mystery why Enigma will entertain you
Review: Take a cast of Britian's best actors, add a dash of espionage with a touch of romance and you have the recipe for a fantastic thriller. "Enigma" starts slowly building it's characters up warts and all. The two mysteries encapsulated in the film slowly twist together to a dramatic, yet believable ending. For those of us addicted to suspense and mystery, "Enigma" is truely the elixur to cure our needs.
Rating:
Summary: Good movie on a complicated theme
Review: This is a very enjoyable movie which tries to be historically accurate and, at the same time, provides us with a personal touch. It is a film about the English breaking the enigma code of the Germans in World War II - most likely one of the decisive "victories" of the Allies in that war. If you are into spy movies connected to World War II combined with a personal story of the codebreakers, buy it. The actors do a very fine job. A last remark: finally the credit for this decisive "victory" goes to the ones who deserve it, the British counter-intelligence.
Rating: 
Summary: Gripping and suspenseful, though flawed
Review: Based on Robert Harris' bestselling novel, "Enigma" is a taut, suspenseful thriller adapted to the screen by Oscar-winner Tom Stoppard ("Shakespeare in Love"). Stoppard's script is both the source of "Enigma"'s great pleasures as well as its decided flaws. The story, about a British WWII codebreaker (Dougray Scott) searching for both his missing lover and a spy, provides the framework for thrills and romance while providing a minor history lesson (if not always accurate--perhaps it will spur the viewer to do more research--always the sign of good writing). There's also the added pleasure of Stoppard's rich, witty dialogue. On the other hand, Stoppard has tacked on to the film a completely ridiculous finale that's more Hollywood than anything else in the film and leaves a sour aftertaste (the flick resembles not so much Hitchcock as it does classic British thrillers like "The Man Who Never Was" [1956] or "Sink the Bismarck!" [1960]). Nevertheless, "Enigma" is still fantastic entertainment, benefitting from director Michael Apted's sure and steady hand, and the excellent contributions in the branches of cinematography, art direction, and sound recording. While Mr. Scott lacks charisma in the lead character, everyone around him shines, especially Kate Winslet (hiding her exquisite beauty behind a frumpy hairdo and thick glasses) and Jeremy Northam (utterly charming--and sexily dangerous--as a secret service agent). In the end, if you're looking for something more than the latest brainless Hollywood macho extravaganza, the smart, sophisticated "Enigma" will be sure to please.
Rating:
Summary: Enigma
Review: Tired of those ordinary Hollywood films? Then Enigma is for you. Superb casting, direction, screenplay, and music will take you through a great dramatic film. It was well worth a trip of nearly 100 miles each way to view during its limited release. This small film was hugely entertaining!!!! Two Thumbs Up and Bravo!
Rating: 
Summary: Revisionist Historical Garbage as Love Story
Review: This movie is based on a novel, and the story told in the movie is filled with pure nonsense. The British Royal Navy was justifiably incensed when the movie, "U-571", was released in The United States depicting an American crew pulling off one of the great coups of the war by stealing an Enigma machine from a German U-Boat. The event did take place, however the British made the score, Americans had nothing to do with it. And people wonder why so many young people are clueless about history. American filmmakers are continually charged with corrupting films by Americanizing them, this film was Britished! To then sit and watch a British film totally falsify history to their benefit at the expense of the truth left me ill. The initial introduction of the device was in 1928, the first breakthroughs of the operation of Enigma took place in Poland by a team of Polish math wizards in the winter of 1932. Marian Rejewski was the man who determined the wiring of Enigma's first rotor which allowed the Polish to read German cipher traffic in 1933. The Poles had models made by a Polish National and these were sent to the British, together with all of the knowledge that had been accumulated. The British got the models from the Poles in 1939! Who cracked the first war time codes in 1939, the same team headed by Marian Rejewski! This movie is a love story, and that is fine. What is outrageous and indefensible is the hijacking of history by the British who made the film. The only other aspect of the movie that is worse is that the writers included a Polish character, which, far from portraying the true role of the Poles instead portrayed a fictional traitor that sold out to the Germans. So in this thrashing of history the Poles are changed from the brilliant team that made the continued success of Enigma even possible, to a bit part, and as that of a traitor. Poland lost over 17,000,000 citizens killed during World War II, a higher percentage than any other nation involved in the war. The company that brought this out is owned in large part by Mick Jagger, excuse me, "Sir Mick", he was recently knighted. He should stick to music, for as a responsible maker of films, he is atrocious. And as for the director, his previous work includes James Bond, a rather peculiar view of British spymasters and their continuous role in saving the planet. Director Michael Apted heads up, shhhhhhhhhhhh James Bond is not real.
Rating: 
Summary: Do you appreciate the work of Tom Stoppard?
Review: Tom Jericho (Dougray Scott) is a genius mathematician who caused numerous problems when he was previously a member of the Enigma code breaking group. His bosses once again require Tom's enormous talent, but also dislike having to endure their irascible employee's erratic behavior. The Germans have changed the code endangering the Allies military effort. Have the British been betrayed by one of their own? Tom had a brief and disastrous affair with the vivacious Claire who has disappeared. Is she a victim of foul play or a German agent who has escaped to avoid capture? A number of enemy intercepts have also been found missing. Is this merely due to ordinary human error, or has something far more sinister occurred? The secret agent Wigham (Jeremy Northam) seems to delight in irritating Tom. Does Wigham know more than he is letting on? Is he just trying to do his job, or is the man a real jerk? Hester (Kate Winslet) is the roommate of the missing Claire? Is she jealous of the more popular Claire, and why does she risk arrest assisting Tom in his quest to find out what really happened? Also, what significance is there to the mass graveyard being unearthed by German ground troops in Eastern Europe? Why are Hitler's people so intensely interested in this particular event? What is so unusual about human beings being killed during wartime? There is much placed upon our plate by director Michael Apted and it is best not to allow one's mind to wander even for a second. There is a very good reason why Enigma has been released to a small handful of theaters. The screen play was written by Tom Stoppard. I simply did not enjoy the long sentences that ultimately exhausted and bewildered me. Perhaps you may conclude that I lack the intellectual depth to appreciate a creative giant such as Stoppard. Regretfully, however, I can only give this film three stars. Enigma is definitely not for everyone.
Rating: 
Summary: Could be better
Review: A film trying to emulate the best of Hitchcock, doesn't quite succeed. The plot doesn't make 100 percent sense. A reasonbly ordinary man is caught up in great events. He is charged with solving two mysteries: what happened to Clair and breaking a new German code. Somehow he manages to solve both mysteries at the same time. The best parts of the film are the police interrogations. Those scenes are crisp and dramatic. Wait for the DVD.
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