by Bruce E. Parry
Let me start by saying that this review is after the first recent viewing of this film in preparation for watching it for and with my Movie Group (see the associated blog on my Movie Group). By the time the Movie Group meets, I will have seen it several times, may have blogged again about it, and will be ready to discuss it with my friends. That said, I also believe that I saw this film when it came out in 2004 and completely forgot about it until I rewatched it this time.
And that’s the essence of my review. I defy anyone to make sense of this film on first viewing. The best that can be gleaned from it is that the young men (kids) involved—and the film—go back and forth in time and in the process have some adventures, including trying to change the time line. There is probably someone out there who will refute my claim, but anyone who grasped the complexities of those comings and goings on first viewing would have to be a savant.
One of my Movie Group comrades—Nick—sent around a couple of links that clarify the movie. He recommended that we watch the film at least once before looking at the links. I did. Then I looked. One was a timeline that detailed nine (9!!) different timelines followed in the film. Even grasping faintly what was happening in the movie, I didn’t realize there were or could have been that many permutations of their time travel. They may be wrong, but they make my point for me. I still haven’t studied the sites, but at least I’m aware of their content for later study.
All that said, I love movies you have to rewatch to clearly grasp. At least I love them if I am confident that there is an actual consistent story that is unfolding. These are like David Lynch films. Watch Mullholland Dr.(2001). It is almost impossible to figure out what is going on in the film in detail the first time out. What you get is a feeling. The details are left up to subsequent viewings. Primer is like that. I left me with a carefully developed, nuanced feeling that something is going on here, that the characters are striving to make things right, and that the film is populated with human characters worth knowing. The details—and they are myriad—come later (I hope).
Much of the mood is set by the fact that almost the entire movie is filmed with hand-held cameras, leaving you with the feeling that you’re in the garage (or wherever) with the characters and are part of the plot. This technique emerged in the popular consciousness with The Blair Witch Project (1999) which made you feel like a camper having the same experience as the characters. Primer does the same thing, except that you (I) don’t really understand what’s going on (yet).
Plus, the film takes place in the present. While we haven’t captured time travel yet, the kids stumble on it by accident using present-day technology that even they don’t fully understand. Their level of understanding of physics, math and engineering is carefully revealed in the film, but that just makes them smart, not futuristic. The result is that the film is accessible and that viewer feels like his or her participation is plausible. Combined with the camera work, this makes for an absorbing film.
The upshot of all this is that I am really looking forward to seeing this film again and again, until I understand it. I also look forward to my Movie Group bringing some insight of what is—or may be—going on in the film. Stay tuned for further posts!
Copyright Bruce E. Parry
Let me start by saying that this review is after the first recent viewing of this film in preparation for watching it for and with my Movie Group (see the associated blog on my Movie Group). By the time the Movie Group meets, I will have seen it several times, may have blogged again about it, and will be ready to discuss it with my friends. That said, I also believe that I saw this film when it came out in 2004 and completely forgot about it until I rewatched it this time.
And that’s the essence of my review. I defy anyone to make sense of this film on first viewing. The best that can be gleaned from it is that the young men (kids) involved—and the film—go back and forth in time and in the process have some adventures, including trying to change the time line. There is probably someone out there who will refute my claim, but anyone who grasped the complexities of those comings and goings on first viewing would have to be a savant.
One of my Movie Group comrades—Nick—sent around a couple of links that clarify the movie. He recommended that we watch the film at least once before looking at the links. I did. Then I looked. One was a timeline that detailed nine (9!!) different timelines followed in the film. Even grasping faintly what was happening in the movie, I didn’t realize there were or could have been that many permutations of their time travel. They may be wrong, but they make my point for me. I still haven’t studied the sites, but at least I’m aware of their content for later study.
All that said, I love movies you have to rewatch to clearly grasp. At least I love them if I am confident that there is an actual consistent story that is unfolding. These are like David Lynch films. Watch Mullholland Dr.(2001). It is almost impossible to figure out what is going on in the film in detail the first time out. What you get is a feeling. The details are left up to subsequent viewings. Primer is like that. I left me with a carefully developed, nuanced feeling that something is going on here, that the characters are striving to make things right, and that the film is populated with human characters worth knowing. The details—and they are myriad—come later (I hope).
Much of the mood is set by the fact that almost the entire movie is filmed with hand-held cameras, leaving you with the feeling that you’re in the garage (or wherever) with the characters and are part of the plot. This technique emerged in the popular consciousness with The Blair Witch Project (1999) which made you feel like a camper having the same experience as the characters. Primer does the same thing, except that you (I) don’t really understand what’s going on (yet).
Plus, the film takes place in the present. While we haven’t captured time travel yet, the kids stumble on it by accident using present-day technology that even they don’t fully understand. Their level of understanding of physics, math and engineering is carefully revealed in the film, but that just makes them smart, not futuristic. The result is that the film is accessible and that viewer feels like his or her participation is plausible. Combined with the camera work, this makes for an absorbing film.
The upshot of all this is that I am really looking forward to seeing this film again and again, until I understand it. I also look forward to my Movie Group bringing some insight of what is—or may be—going on in the film. Stay tuned for further posts!
Copyright Bruce E. Parry
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