Primer (2004)

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

3 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shane Carruth	...	Aaron
David Sullivan	...	Abe
Casey Gooden	...	Robert
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	...	Rachel Granger
Chip Carruth	...	Thomas Granger
Delaney Price	...	Laney
Jack Pyland	...	Aaron's Co-worker
Keith Bradshaw	...	Clean Room Technician
Ashok Upadhyaya	...	Laboratory Technician

Storyline

Engineers Aaron, Abe, Robert and Phillip are working on an invention, the prototype being built in Aaron's garage. This project is beyond their day jobs. The project truly does belong to Aaron and Abe, as they use all their free time working on it, primarily trying to overcome the many engineering related problems they've encountered. It is during one of his tests with the invention running that Abe discovers that a protein inside the main unit has multiplied much more rapidly than it could in nature. Rather than the invention being a protein super incubator, Abe, using himself as a guinea pig, and a very meticulous one at that, discovers that the invention can be used as a time machine. In his self experiment, Abe was especially careful not to interfere with his own self in that time warp. Abe passes along this discovery to Aaron, who he expects will tell his wife Kara in what is the sanctity of their marriage, but he doesn't want to tell either Robert or Phillip. Much to Abe's ...

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Plot Keywords:

changing the future | time travel | nonlinear timeline | independent film | invention | 

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Taglines:

If you always want what you can't have, what do you want when you can have anything?

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief language

Did You Know?

Trivia

In order to cut costs, Shane Carruth did mostly single takes of shots, and filmed on 16mm stock. This was then transferred to mini-digital video film which he could edit on his PC. This caused some unforeseen problems: the editing software couldn't handle the sound properly, and two months of editing were needed just to synchronize the audio to the video. The biggest problem, however, was the relative lack of footage, which made it difficult to work around continuity errors and technical problems because there often wasn't an alternate take that could be used.

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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.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Aaron: [Sound of a phone ringing. Aaron, voiceover:] Here's what's going to happen. I'm gonna read this, and you're gonna listen, and you're gonna stay on the line. And you're not gonna interrupt, and you're not gonna speak for any reason. Some of this you know. I'm gonna start at the top of the page.
[pause]
Aaron: Meticulous, yes. Methodical, educated; they were these things. Nothing extreme. Like anyone, they varied. There were days of mistakes and laziness and in-fighting, and there were days, ...

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Crazy Credits

Thanks to Scott Douglass for having the faith to invest in the final stages of marketing and post production

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Sci-Fi Movies No One Really Gets (2020)

User Reviews

A film for the days when science fiction was about wrestling with ideas . . .

A group of young scientists work at a frantic pace to invent they are not quite sure what, but their efforts start demonstrating interesting side effects. From their work in a small cottage industry of error checking devices they are forced to confront the fact that they have discovered something too valuable to market. As they explore the potential of their machine, they are caught in a frantic loop to second guess themselves.

Science fiction in the cinema has largely been dominated by the visual impact, and so this is a welcome (for some) return to the world of ideas. This is not an easy-rise entertainment film but one where you have to concentrate to keep up, working out the logical implications of what's happening. If made on the scale of Men in Black or the Matrix it would descend to the level of spoof – as it is we follow the two main characters knowing that their actions are having momentous effects on the world around them and on themselves. Instead of flashy graphics, we are left to keep the ramifications of the story in mind as the characters themselves grapple with what they know is happening but can't even let themselves look at directly.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

27 May 2005 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Detonatorius

Filming Locations:

Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$28,162, 10 October 2004

Gross USA:

$424,760

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$545,436

Company Credits

Production Co:

ERBP

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1