View Full Version : Primer (2004) 12 Feb 2012 - 25 Feb 2012
Suggested by Garp
Primer
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 accidental 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?
Primer on IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390384/)
Rating 6.9/10
This is probably going to be a marmite film for folks.
A little viewing advice: Be dedicated to watching it.. first time I watched it I ended up having to explain points to Kari (she didn't catch the start of it), so I missed a couple of minor things that turned out to be major and as a consequence it made no sense.
You need to have your full brain on this one.
Watched this a couple of weeks ago but will watch it again over the next couple of weeks. Will be interested to hear peoples' opinions on this one :)
I've seen it but will watch again.
Psymonkee
12-02-2012, 21:49
Tried watching it today but far too tired and nodded off for 15 mins in the middle.
Utter confusion :(
Haha, sounds about right - you need to be awake. I've only seen it once but did rewind and re-watch a few bits of it.
This is on Netflix if anyone has it :)
This is on Netflix if anyone has it :)
Streaming? It's not available that way in the US on Netflix (go figure)
leowyatt
14-02-2012, 10:13
Just found this:
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Streaming? It's not available that way in the US on Netflix (go figure)
Netflix only do streaming here and it's showing when I search for it :)
Watched this today and have to say I was left a bit "meh". I understood what was going on throughout but there was no "woooaahhh" feeling I like to get at the end of films like this. On occasion I like a clever film that makes you think more than the average action movie but I love it when the ending arrives and I've not seen it coming, a real good twist but this left me feeling a bit blank. I liked the way the characters interacted with each other though, seemed far more lifelike than other films with the dialogue flowing backwards and forwards quickly like a normal conversation.
Of course, I may not have got the point at all ;D
Of course, I may not have got the point at all ;D
Yet to watch it again (should be here mid-week for me), but off the top of my head:
Did you notice the fridge? Starts off brand new at the start of the film after the old one suddenly stopped working. Yet the next time they're in the house it's an old fridge and no reference to either new or old or functional state is made, so presumably it's the same old fridge they've always had, and later on supplies a key part for the machine.
The more you dive into the film, the more things like these you'll notice. My conclusion at the end of the film (2nd time through, admittedly) was that we have absolutely no clue when the time-travel story actually started or which thread of it we were getting to see. Clearly for there to be rodents in the loft there is at least one time traveler outside our frame of reference :)
Pumpkinstew
19-02-2012, 20:03
My initial thoughts are that as a piece of cinema, even a piece of independent cinema made on a shoe string, it's really nothing special. As an excercise in mental agility, a sort of movie Sudoku, it's an enjoyable way to spend an hour and a fiendishly clever puzzle to unravel. If you're that way inclined of course.
Anyone sitting down without prior warning might justifiably want to know why they've been subjected to a Einsteinian thought experiment as a form of entertainment
Problem. For the guys to move between Gate A and Gate B the machine has to exist in both places but towards the end of the film it's suggested that they travel further back than the machines creation (and in fact covertly assist in it's invention?)
Problem. For the guys to move between Gate A and Gate B the machine has to exist in both places but towards the end of the film it's suggested that they travel further back than the machines creation (and in fact covertly assist in it's invention?)
.. or are we even following the main story?
Pumpkinstew
20-02-2012, 20:27
They would still need a machine to exist prior to it's earliest creation no matter how many loops within loops there might be
I DON'T THINK I HAVE ANY CLUE WHAT WAS ACTUALLY GOING ON ;D
** HUGE SPOILERS ** There's a good writeup and a few theories and thoughts on Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primer_%28film%29 ** HUGE SPOILERS **
Dymetrie
26-02-2012, 22:46
Not a bad film, I think I understood it :D
Mrs Dym just said that we need a time machine to either win the lottery, or to go and punch a dinosaur. Not a cute one, either, one of the hard ones!
In regards to the film. I couldn't quite get the link between them trying to build something (an unspecified something, at that!) and inventing a time machine. Surely that's something you have to intend to build? Yes/No?
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