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Primer

  • 2004
  • K-15
  • 1h 17m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
111K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,000
156
Primer (2004)
Prime Scene: Scene 1
Play clip0:37
Watch Prime Scene: Scene 1
3 Videos
24 Photos
DramaSci-FiThriller

Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.

  • Director
    • Shane Carruth
  • Writer
    • Shane Carruth
  • Stars
    • Shane Carruth
    • David Sullivan
    • Casey Gooden
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    6.8/10
    111K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    3,000
    156
    • Director
      • Shane Carruth
    • Writer
      • Shane Carruth
    • Stars
      • Shane Carruth
      • David Sullivan
      • Casey Gooden
    • 526User reviews
    • 141Critic reviews
    • 68Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 7 nominations

    Videos3

    Primer
    Trailer 1:42
    Watch Primer
    Prime Scene: Scene 1
    Clip 0:37
    Watch Prime Scene: Scene 1
    Prime Scene: Scene 2
    Clip 1:59
    Watch Prime Scene: Scene 2

    Photos24

    David Sullivan and Shane Carruth in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan and Shane Carruth in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan and Shane Carruth in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan and Shane Carruth in Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan and Shane Carruth in Primer (2004)
    Primer (2004)
    Anand Upadhyaya, David Sullivan, Shane Carruth, Casey Gooden, and Daniel Bueche at an event for Primer (2004)
    Shane Carruth at an event for Primer (2004)
    Shane Carruth at an event for Primer (2004)
    David Sullivan at an event for Primer (2004)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Shane Carruth
    Shane Carruth
    • Aaron
    David Sullivan
    David Sullivan
    • Abe
    Casey Gooden
    Casey Gooden
    • Robert
    Anand Upadhyaya
    Anand Upadhyaya
    • Phillip
    Carrie Crawford
    • Kara
    Jay Butler
    • Metalshop Worker
    John Carruth
    • Man On Couch #1
    Juan Tapia
    • Man On Couch #2
    Ashley Warren
    • Hostess
    Samantha Thomson
    Samantha Thomson
    • Rachel Granger
    Chip Carruth
    • Thomas Granger
    Delaney Price
    • Laney
    Jack Pyland
    • Aaron's Co-worker
    Keith Bradshaw
    • Clean Room Technician
    Ashok Upadhyaya
    • Laboratory Technician
    Brandon Blagg
    • Will
    Jon Cook
    • Will's Cousin
    David Joyner
    • Rachel's Date
    • Director
      • Shane Carruth
    • Writer
      • Shane Carruth
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The budget for the entire film was around $7000. Most of the money was spent on film stock.
    • Goofs
      During numerous takes the director, Shane Carruth, mutters "cut" under his breath. According to the DVD commentary, this is due to their extremely low budget which did not allow them to "waste" film. Carruth notes that a total of 80 minutes of usable footage was shot; the final film is 78 minutes.
    • Quotes

      Aaron: Man, are you hungry? I haven't eaten since later this afternoon.

    • Crazy credits
      Thanks to Scott Douglass for having the faith to invest in the final stages of marketing and post production
    • Connections
      Featured in The 20th IFP Independent Spirit Awards (2005)

    User reviews526

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Incredible
    You remember the first time you saw The Matrix (please, not the awful sequels) and you could barely keep up with what was going on, trying to piece together the pieces of what you were being told into a coherent story?

    This movie was exactly like that. The first half or so is fairly linear (despite the frenzied Altman-esque style of everyone talking on top of each other), but then it gets WEIRD and it just absolutely blew me away. This film won a major Sundance award, and normally that means I won't like it (especially the normally pandering audience award winners) but this movie, and first-time filmmaker Shane Carruth, deserves absolutely everything it gets. I am just blown away.

    Did you like Pi? If so, go see this one.

    By the way, the attention to detail in the beginning is great. Often in thrillers with technical content, if you have a technical education you have consciously ignore all the stupid movie crud that they pull to make it into a good story. But this movie pulls off an incredibly believable technical story, with only a few distracting gaffs. That is, the tech jargon is good enough that you don't get distracted and can focus on the story line.

    Final comment: Yes, it is very hard to follow the story line in this movie.

    Obviously I'm not going to spoil it, but I think the following fact will help when the movie gets kind of hairy towards the end: Aaron is the dark-haired guy, Abe is the blond-haired guy.

    This movie now has distribution and you should keep an eye out for it in the fall.
    helpful•270
    115
    • ChrisC_ATL
    • Jun 13, 2004

    Top picks

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    FAQ12

    • A NOTE REGARDING SPOILERS
    • What is the conventional understanding of what occurs in the film?
    • Where did the title come from?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 25, 2005 (Turkey)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Máy Thời Gian
    • Filming locations
      • Henley's Aircraft Services - 15841 Addison Road, Addison, Texas, USA
    • Production company
      • ERBP
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $7,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $424,760
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $28,162
      • Oct 10, 2004
    • Gross worldwide
      • $545,436
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 17 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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