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Primer

Play trailer Poster for Primer PG-13 2004 1h 18m Drama Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
72% Tomatometer 130 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
Intellectual engineers Aaron (Shane Carruth) and Abe (David Sullivan) build and sell error-checking technology with the help of their friends Robert (Casey Gooden) and Phillip (Anand Upadhyaya). But when Aaron and Abe accidentally invent what they think is a time machine, Abe builds a version capable of transporting a human and puts the device to the test. As the two friends obsess over their creation, they discover the dark consequences of their actions.

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Primer

Primer

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Critics Consensus

Dense, obtuse, but stimulating, Primer is a film for viewers ready for a cerebral challenge.

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Critics Reviews

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Scott Tobias AV Club 06/16/2017
Primer gains its seductive power by leaving the solution tantalizingly out of reach. Go to Full Review
Andrew Pulver Guardian 06/16/2017
2/5
Primer is off-putting: in trying to be elusive it's simply obstructive. Go to Full Review
Peter Bradshaw Guardian 06/16/2017
An exhilarating, disturbing and funny experience. Go to Full Review
Mike Massie Gone With The Twins 11/09/2020
5/10
The storytelling is so confusing and the multiple timelines are so numerous that sorting out what exactly unfolds saps all the entertainment value. Go to Full Review
Debbie Lynn Elias Behind The Lens 11/14/2019
Certainly there are many flaws with this project, most from a technical standpoint and obviously due to the budget, but despite those shortcomings, Primer still stands out as the most intellectually stimulating film of the year. Go to Full Review
Paul Dale The List 04/26/2019
4/5
Carruth's downbeat and unique debut feature is something of an anomaly in the low budget U.S. indie filmmaking scene: Played out like a deadpan, almost naturalistic political thriller... Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Tommy T. @toemeister0 Mar 16 Such a deep and captivating movie. Time travel done very realistically and really captures the time period. Brilliant movie all around. See more Par H @Parhwy Mar 16 Primer (2004) is a 78-minute-long sci-fi/drama I saw on Prime in March 2026. It took me until the 28th minute to realise that I have watched this before. A long time ago, much closer to 2004 than to now. I continued watching as that remembering reminded me the film is worth watching however not enough to spoil the twists and subtlety. This is beyond a low budget film. 7,000 2004 dollars, US. Can you believe that? This is a time travel movie up close. That closeness is no doubt dictated by the budget. Nonetheless, it works. In having to use Google instead of my brain to remember this film, I sadly scrolled by events in 2020 which tainted my admiration for the filmmaker… Doubly sad as he is in Tales from the Loop (2020), a series I love and aim to rewatch. The film… Back to… The final act, the last third, is much more complex and needs fixed, don’t-touch-your-phone attention. Rewatch? Probably, in two decades time when I am again forgetful. Recommend? Yes. 5/10. See more Jessy C @Yuneth Jan 8 Primer is an interesting film with a strong concept, and I appreciate how the director presents the story in a grounded, low-budget way. However, the film lacks the qualities needed to fully engage the audience. It relies heavily on technical jargon, much of which is not explained, making it difficult to follow unless the viewer has a strong background in science. While it is a science-fiction film, the balance between fiction and science is not handled well—the scientific rules of the fictional concept are never clearly established and must be inferred entirely through dense conversations between the two main characters. The story feel emotionally distant and, at times, unrealistic. Because of this, the film lacks suspense and rarely puts the audience on edge or drives curiosity about what will happen next. Overall, Primer is intellectually ambitious but emotionally detached. It is more of a puzzle for analytical viewers than an engaging cinematic experience for a general audience. See more Prabhu H @RT81761607 Sep 20 Had to stop halfway through. Unpolished dialogues mumbled throughout by all making it difficult to understand what the heck they are talking about. Movie made in 2004, yet looks like the entire production time travelled to the 70s by the looks of it. Looks like they used a camcorder with props, clothes and everything else bought from a thrift store. Worth a skip ... See more Rock H @RT11451157 Jul 9 Primer is what happens when two mid-level IT guys stumble into a time loop and decide to whisper through the whole movie so no one can tell they’re bullshitting. The science feels like it was cribbed from a C+ science fair project, and the dialogue is like watching 11th graders act out a fantasy of what smart people sound like. If you’re into cardboard pacing, mumbled jargon, and zero emotional stakes, buckle up. Everyone else—go rewatch The Langoliers and enjoy actual cosmic dread. Normally on RT I align with audience scores (popcornometer). This time I don’t. And I can’t even imagine why this has a 79% 🍿rating. 🤷🏼‍♂️ If you asked me without looking, I’d guess it had a 13% 🍿 See more Dan P @RT70496146 Jun 17 The only way is would use the word “cerebral” to describe this smug, waxing poetic, existential melodrama, is that its head is buried so far up its own ass it reached its brain. See more Read all reviews
Primer

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Movie Info

Synopsis Intellectual engineers Aaron (Shane Carruth) and Abe (David Sullivan) build and sell error-checking technology with the help of their friends Robert (Casey Gooden) and Phillip (Anand Upadhyaya). But when Aaron and Abe accidentally invent what they think is a time machine, Abe builds a version capable of transporting a human and puts the device to the test. As the two friends obsess over their creation, they discover the dark consequences of their actions.
Director
Shane Carruth
Producer
Shane Carruth
Screenwriter
Shane Carruth
Distributor
ThinkFilm
Production Co
ERBP
Rating
PG-13 (Brief Language)
Genre
Drama, Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 16, 2004, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 18, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$424.8K
Runtime
1h 18m
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