Big Worlds On Small Screens & Fantasy/Sci-Fi Films You’ve Probably Never Heard Of: Rebecca Fisher Discusses “Primer”
~ by Rebecca Fisher
I was given one piece of advice before watching this film: that I would have to watch it twice, since it’s impossible to understand the first time around.
Written, directed, produced, edited, scored and starring Shane Carruth, Primer is a low budget sci-fi film that involves two long-time friends who invent a time travel machine in their garage. Their discovery is almost by accident and the device is about the size of a microwave, but soon plans are made to design a larger one. One that’s big enough for a person.
Shot to resemble a fly-on-the-wall documentary, with a budget of only seven thousand dollars, a crew of five and a cast made up of the director’s friends and family, Primer above all conveys the idea that if time-travel was possible, this is how it would occur. The technical jargon used by Aaron and Abe isn’t simplified for the audience, the locations are almost painfully mundane, and the time travel itself completely void of any flashy special-effects.
As seems to be the case with many indie films, Primer is just as interested in the ethical implications of its premise as its science-fiction subject matter. It asks not what would you do if you could time travel, but how long it would take before your good intentions gave way to greed and arrogance; how soon would your awe at the ability to re-experience the day wear off and be replaced with weariness at the endless permutations of time? Would you use foreknowledge for the common good? Or to accrue a fortune on the stock market?
Like a drug addiction, Abe and Aaron can’t stop meddling with the power they’ve discovered.
Be aware, though, that Primer is a tough watch. A lot of the scenes are just the characters talking to each other, and as the subject matter gets more complicated (with time paradoxes and past-present overlaps) and the men’s dabbling moves from simple experimentation to meddling with their personal relationships, the film also gets more and more confusing.
I’ve heard some say that the story would be utterly incomprehensible if it wasn’t for the voice-over narration, and that’s probably true – and I say that as someone who usually thinks voice-over narration is a lazy storytelling device. The plot is non-linear, with some scenes out of chronological order (at least, I think so!) and an ending that poses far more questions than answers.
Abe and Aaron prepare for their first time travel expedition
Primer has become a cult classic in the ten years since its release, with a multitude of theories and explanations and FAQs posted all across the internet. It’s certainly not for everyone, and it’s definitely not a movie you can watch casually. You have to pay close attention to what unfolds, to consider every turn of events, and – as I pass on the warning that was initially given to me – you can’t expect to fully understand it after just one viewing.
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Wrapping Up “Fantasy/Sci-Fi Films You’ve Probably Never Heard Of”:
So this brings us to the end of the sub-series “Fantasy/Sci-Fi Films You’ve Probably Never Heard Of.” I hope that it has brought some otherwise unheard of films to your attention – more than that, I hope that if you chose to seek any of them out, you end up enjoying what they have to offer. I’ve had a lot of fun revisiting some of my old favourites and discovering some new classics, though a part of me is looking forward to going back to my usual format.
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Next Time: The 100
Speaking of which, up next is a look at the relatively recent The 100, a sci-fi show that follows the current dystopian trend of throwing teenagers into a post-apocalyptical survival scenario. And yet there’s plenty of things to like about the delivery of this premise – not limited to its great female protagonist.
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About The Reviewer:
Rebecca Fisher is a graduate of the University of Canterbury with a Masters degree in English Literature, mainly, she claims, because she was able to get away with writing her thesis on C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman. She is a reviewer for FantasyLiterature.com, a large website that specializes in fantasy and science-fiction novels, as well as posting reviews to Amazon.com and her They’re All Fictional blog.
To read Rebecca’s detailed introduction of both herself and the series, as well as preceding reviews, click on:
Big Worlds On Small Screens
Rebecca has recently won the Sir Julius Vogel Award 2015 for Best Fan Writer, for writing including Big Worlds On Small Screens.
Oh, Primer is one of my favorite movies. So twisted, so strange, so good.