Movies - Primer

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Primer is a 2004 intellectual thriller independent film written, directed, produced, and starred in by Shane Carruth which explores the darker side of the human condition and interaction between our deepest desires and technology.

Although produced on a shoestring budget, the film was honored at film festivals, including the Sundance Film Festival where it received the Grand Jury Prize.

Plot

The film takes place in a suburbia outlying an unnamed present-day metropolis. Four engineers—Aaron, Abe, Robert, and Phillip—work for a large corporation during the day, and run a side business out of Aaron's garage designing, building, and selling electronic products of their own. The four—who are always wearing ties and business casual for some unknown reason—take turns deciding the direction of the group's research focus for two month periods. All other decisions are made by voting. Because of their tight budget, Aaron is constantly thinking about parts which might be scavanged from things they already own. Because of a difference of opinion about the group's focus, Aaron and Abe independently take to design a device which can alter the effect of gravity on an object placed inside it; an unexpected side effect of the machine has far greater implications.

All of the time travel events in the film take place during the week of Sunday, March 23, 2003 to Friday, March 29, 2003, although the timeline of the film becomes complicated. Those dates can be intuited by the references to March Madness and the fact that the events take place in a calendar week. However, in the park scene, Aaron refers to a game between North Carolina and Michigan, which never took place in 2003. This is easily explained by the fact that Aaron was not really listening to March Madness at the time, which is explained more in depth below. There are nine timelines in total, generated by trips taken by the various characters.

Abe and Aaron confirm that they have accidentally created a time machine after they test the device on their watches. They immediately cut Robert and Phillip out by claiming that the garage has to be fumigated. The device is unlike a traditionally envisioned time machine; it can only "travel" back to its turn-on time, and the user must spend as much time in the machine as he wants to go back. They first use their machines to succeed in the stock market, but ethical and philosophical dilemmas soon ensue regarding the applications and dangers of the machine. The film explores different individuals' reactions to the power of foreknowledge, and the results of its abuse.

Timeline order

Different timelines represent the events as experienced from the point of view of Aaron, Abe, and their respective doubles.

The parenthetical numbers after the names of characters and boxes indicate the iteration of that character or object. This is possible because the design of the boxes is modular; that is, they can be collapsed and taken back in time in another box. Note that although there are at least six unique Aarons and at least five unique Abes, there are only three permanent Aarons and two permanent Abes at the end of the film. The original Aaron and the original Abe remain in the suburbs. Abe (5) stays to prevent the originals from creating more boxes. Aaron (2) goes to France and Aaron (6) goes to some unknown location. The permanent doubles were created by the use of the failsafe machines.

Timeline 1

At 8:30 on Sunday morning Abe (0) starts a 30 minute timer on the Failsafe box (0) and leaves the storage facility. At 9:00 the Failsafe box (0) starts.

At 8:45 on Monday morning Abe (0) starts a 15 minute timer on the first box (0) and drives to the hotel. At 3:00 in the afternoon he drives back to the storage facility and enters the first box (0), creating timeline 2.

Timeline 2

Abe (1) exits from the first box (0) at 9:00 in the morning. At 10:00 that same morning Abe (1) talks to Aaron (0) about the boxes in the park. At 3:00 that afternoon, Abe (1) shows Aaron (0) Abe (0) entering the storage facility. Abe (0) subsequently enters the first box (0), causing him to leave the timeline. That night, Aaron (0) builds the second box (0).

At 8:45 Tuesday morning Abe (1) and Aaron (0) start 15 minute timers on the first (0) and second (0) boxes and drive to the hotel using Abe's car. At 9:00 both boxes (0) start. Abe (1) and Aaron (0) review the stocks they plan to buy on the way to the hotel. At 3:00 Abe (1) and Aaron (0) go back to the storage facility, enter the first (0) and second (0) boxes respectively, creating timeline 3.

Timeline 3

Tuesday morning at 8:45 Abe (1) and Aaron (0) start a 15 minute timer on the first (0) and second (0) boxes and drive to the hotel in Abe's car. At 9:00 the boxes (0) start and Abe (2) and Aaron (1) exit from them. Abe (2) and Aaron (1) go to Aaron's house to trade the stocks they researched in timeline 2. At 3:00 that afternoon Abe (2) and Aaron (1) go back to the storage facility and watch Abe (1) and Aaron (0) enter the building and the boxes (0).

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