Anand Upadhyaya, Ashley Warren, Carrie Crawford

At night and on weekends, four men in a suburban garage have built a cottage industry of error-checking devices. But, they know that there is something more. There is some idea, some mechanism, some a...( read more  read more... )ccidental side effect that is standing between them and a pure leap of innovation. And so, through trial and error they are building the device that is missing most. However, two of these men find the device and immediately realize that it is too valuable to market. The limit of their trust in each other is strained when they are faced with the question, "If you always want what you can't have, what do you want when you can have anything?"

Flixster Users

83% liked it

33,019 ratings

Critics

72% liked it

113 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 19 min.

Directed by: Shane Carruth

Release Date: October 8, 2004

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DVD Release Date: April 5, 2005

Stats: 3,169 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (3,169)


  • June 22, 2009
    Abe: Aaron, I can imagine no way in which this thing could be considered anywhere remotely close to safe. All I know is I spent six hours in there and I'm still alive... You still want to do it?

    How do you logically explain time travel? Many movies have had fun with the concept...( read more) of time travel, but this film does a damn fine job of making you think that every base has been covered. However, it was made by a mathematician, who wants to make sure that all the dialog is extremely technical, which doesn't make for the most entertaining feature.

    Made for $7000, instead of venturing south of the border for some guitar case gun play Rodriguez style, writer/producer/editor/director/star Shane Carruth has made a heavily complex film focused on two guys who accidentally discover time travel.

    After heavily going over the details of all this, which eventually spells out that they can only travel back in time, the two plan to cheat the stock market. Eventually they venture out further to work out how to alter their lives, which drives them to paranoia and questions about their friendship.

    For an extremely low budgeted film, it certainly shows that a lot of care was put into its making. Shots are carefully planned out and its scored well (also handled by Carruth). However, staying engaged in this film is not easy. Its very into itself explaining everything without at any point lowering its bar so just anyone can understand it.

    It is interesting but damn if you really want to be involved to enjoy it.

    Aaron: What's worse, thinking you're being paranoid or knowing you should be?
  • April 21, 2009
    my head hurts
  • April 18, 2009
    A time travel movie that doesn't dumb down it's subject matter. Due to the dedicated thought put into time travel here, it doesn't create much in the way of characters or a plot. This is a very detailed movie, from time-travel side effects to planning out how to reenact a day if ...( read more)needs be. There's some great stuff here, the men trying to manipulate time to their own devices causes a lot of fascinating conflict between them. It's also rather dull and at times it's budget lets it down. But with a budget of $7,000 that's to be expected. Great ideas and a promising debut that requires multiple viewings.
  • March 2, 2009
    What would it mean to exist "two" times simultaneously? If you can wrap your head around that idea, follow an extremely complex and convoluted script while watching a perfectly shot independent film with a very low budget, you'll love Primer. If none of those fit your bill and ...( read more)you're not into tech speak, you will hate Primer. I'll have to give a few more viewings just to make sure I'm capturing the true meaning of the film....
  • January 25, 2009
    Can there be a greater encouragement to would-be film-makers, than this movie? A time-travel story filmed for $7000! This is a budget within reach of even the most cash-strapped.

    The movie, is not without flaws. In particular, the crew fall into the pitfall that seems to strike...( read more) all first-timers - failing to ensure a good principal sound recording. This at times interferes with the performances, since the overdubbed voices used to correct the poor sound look like poor acting. But the riveting story, tight editing (a product of the budget constraints) and surprisingly good cinematography more than make up for the sound. In an attempt to shy from patronising it's audience, the dialogue is filled with pseudo-science, and a minimum of answers. The film will most likely leave you with a heap of questions that will necessitate further viewings of the film to unravel. But, in this case, it is all the better for it.

    A great film that deserved to do well. Hopefully, this won't be the writer/director's only project.
  • November 8, 2009
    I was turned on to this movie through a web comic and charting website (yes, a charting website) that made references to it within the same week.

    Honestly, I'll need to watch it again before it'll really make sense. The web of timelines, once the main characters start using t...( read more)he box, is very intriguing.
  • November 8, 2009
    acting is passable. story is somewhat hard to follow and sometimes boring. still a pretty decent concept. i can't hate it, but i don't love it.
  • November 2, 2009
    ingenious, fascinating, convoluted
  • October 31, 2009
    It's so hard to know what to make of this movie. It's originality and uniqueness is quickly evident as you're watching it, but the narrative style and complicated technical jargon make it hard to follow what exactly is happening most of the time. This was, apparently, a deliber...( read more)ate choice, and a gutsy one at that. Something has to be said for a filmmaker who is willing to make a movie the way they want it to be, even if it will inevitably turn off the majority of viewers. I'm not sure if subsequent viewings of this movie would lead to greater understanding, but I don't think that it necessarily matters. It shows a look at the creation, use, and complications of time travel that no other movie broaches to the same degree. And even if it's incredibly confusing I think the inherent value and unique nature of this movie is readily apparent and significant. I had to give it a fairly high rating because it's simply something I've never seen before and it was deliberately made to be something entirely different. The rating is not so much an indicator of the film's definite quality but rather an endorsement of the creativity involved in creating such a plot and executing that idea on a very minimal budget.
  • October 12, 2009
    I love that I've seen this movie several times and get something new each time I see it. It's not for everyone, but this is my favourite movie, ever.

Critic Reviews


May 4, 2005
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness

Unrelentingly boring. full review

October 29, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

It is maddening, fascinating and completely successful. full review

October 15, 2004
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

What's impressive -- aside from the fact that Carruth got the thing made in the first place -- is that the movie's tone skates right between coherence and an appreciation for endless, even infinite po... full review

October 14, 2004
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

A brilliant little indie thriller. full review

October 14, 2004
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

Carruth has made a fascinating first film and a solid foundation for things to come. full review

October 7, 2004
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

An ingenious first film made on a budget of about $7,000 by a former engineer and self-taught filmmaker about the perils of ingenuity. full review

View more Primer reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • reynaldovelazquez
    September 21, 2007
    if you really like movies, you should see primer, if you like to sit and watch any crap, dont even read this, This movie will surprise you when you less expect it and from this moment on you will be plugged triyng to figure it out, and then you will be traped in the most fascinating plot ever, watch it, and do youurself a favor, watch over and over again,
    Tip: dont quit in the first 30 minutes, keep watchin'... trust me

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Primer Trivia


  • Which film won the grand jury prize award at the 2004 Sundance film festival, beating Napoleon Dynamite and Garden State?  Answer »
  • Which canadian movie features two engineers who by accident discovers a way to "travel" through time?  Answer »
  • Primer deals primarily with what phenomenon?  Answer »

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