Primer (2004)

What I thought would be quite a simple narrative, your typical time travelling device that was accidentally stumbled upon, turned out to be something quite complex. The constant technical talk that you would need a bit of scientific knowledge to understand at least half of what they were saying, was slightly off-putting. Yet at the same time, it was necessary in order to create the desired effect of technicians desperately trying to make their invention work, a more realistic approach. There would be no time for small talk. The skilled Aaron and Abe were the characters who follow through on this invention and try and use it to their advantage, although stumbling across few, but detrimental, problems on the way. I was intrigued to find out how the Director, Shane Carruth, would pull off the usually expensive and full of CGI, time travel film, and bring it down to the low budget of $7,000. I have to say, the film’s concept is brilliant in itself. However, confusion started to set in nearer the end when all the complications of time travel began to catch up with them. I’m uncertain if it was supposed to have that effect, as even the characters started to become bewildered by the events. I would have liked to give it a higher rating, but I feel that there are still some missing pieces to the puzzle that even some investigating hasn’t managed to fill in. In order to have a chance of following the plot, you have to constantly be alert, listening to every detail. I usually enjoy putting in the effort when watching films, but this was slightly beyond comprehension in some scenes. I recommend people to watch it and experience it for themselves as it is truly interesting. However, it will not be something that I will be rushing back to anytime soon.