Primer

Synopsis: Engineers Aaron, Abe, Robert and Phillip are working on an invention, the prototype being built in Aaron's garage. This project is beyond their day jobs. The project truly does belong to Aaron and Abe, as they use all their free time working on it, primarily trying to overcome the many engineering related problems they've encountered. It is during one of his tests with the invention running that Abe discovers that a protein inside the main unit has multiplied much more rapidly than it could in nature. Rather than the invention being a protein super incubator, Abe, using himself as a guinea pig, and a very meticulous one at that, discovers that the invention can be used as a time machine. In his self experiment, Abe was especially careful not to interfere with his own self in that time warp. Abe passes along this discovery to Aaron, who he expects will tell his wife Kara in what is the sanctity of their marriage, but he doesn't want to tell either Robert or Phillip. Much to Abe's surpri
Director(s): Shane Carruth
Production: ThinkFilm
  3 wins & 7 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.9
Metacritic:
68
Rotten Tomatoes:
72%
PG-13
Year:
2004
77 min
$392,420
Website
4,568 Views


Here's what's going to happen.

I'm going to read this...

and you're going to listen,

and you're going to stay on the line.

You're not going to interrupt.

You're not going to speak for any reason.

Now, some of this you know.

I'm going to start at the top of the page.

Meticulous, yes. Methodical. Educated.

They were these things.

Nothing extreme. Like anyone, they varied.

There were days of mistakes

and laziness and infighting.

And there were days, good days,

when by anyone's judgment...

they would have to be considered clever.

No one would say

that what they were doing was complicated.

It wouldn't even be considered new.

Except maybe in the geological sense.

They took from their surroundings

what was needed...

and made of it something more.

-We haven't even set up an appointment.

-What order date did you put on this?

-The 28th. Why?

-I don't know.... Yeah, I'm putting 28th.

Have you thought any more

about what you want to put forward?

-Not really.

-Because I was--

I mean I haven't changed my mind

or anything.

Phillip and I were talking,

and we think it could be good. It'd be fun.

Nobody's saying it wouldn't be fun.

The time for jacking around with tesla coils

and ball lightning in the garage is over.

Maybe you should try it on your own

in yourfree time.

My free time? The free time

afterthe 50 hours a week at work...

or afterthe 30 hours of free time

I already spend in that garage?

And it's not a tesla coil.

I could save a few minutes a day

by eating on the toilet.

How many patents do we have?

In the last 14 months?

-Did you sign the agreement?

-Nobody signed the agreement.

Doesn't matter,

we're sticking to the agreement.

Name one thing out of that garage

that's remotely profitable.

I don't see anybody quitting their jobs

because of it. Are you?

Abe just means that right now

the JTAG cards are it.

When you look at the addresses, we have

a lot of apartments. A lot of residences.

But these are not the bulk orders

to the OEMs or retail giants.

-These are the quiet basement--

-Hackers.

Yeah, hacker wannabes

testing their dads' old motherboards.

And I know that a lot of that is my fault,

admittedly, you know.

With everything last year, and the doubletalk

we were getting from Platts...

-and all the stuff we won't get into now--

-We should get into it.

I'm sorry. What?

Go ahead. Tell him.

We should get into it.

I talked to my brothertoday.

He knows of two other cases like that

at his firm.

-Let Platts know that we're talking about it.

-Look, forget Platts.

This has got to be about what

has the best chance of going to market...

and what is going to get us VC attention.

Look, I stuck by you guys

when it was yourturn.

And I wasn't 100% sure

of what we were doing...

or even if I didn't agree, maybe.

But if it's my turn...

if we're still playing by the rules,

then this is what I want to try.

Here, take it.

They said it wouldn't hold a freeze.

Robert, please. It's not going to hold.

-It's going to go bad in my car.

-It'll go bad here. Okay, thanks.

-Good night, all.

-See you.

-We just got done giving this huge speech--

-We gave the speech?

We just got done. It was five minutes ago.

I'm the one that forced the issue. They're

onto us because I suck as the bad cop.

-You should do it. You could fake it better.

-I don't know about that.

As long as we're going down this road

where it's eighth grade physics...

and happy fun time out in that garage,

I think we could stand to try this.

Phillip and Robert are gung ho on theirs,

and that's fine.

But you know I have no interest in that.

I know you have no interest,

besides the fact...

that Phillip and Robert don't even need us.

They just want to use the equipment.

For what I want to do? We don't need them.

Not even Phillip,

because it doesn't need software.

-Is she asleep?

-No, and she needs a bath.

-She'll wind up in the closet if I do it.

-That's fine.

You know, even if Robert's okay with it,

and he won't be.

-I don't understand what that thing will do.

-We'll let them go at it fortwo months.

-They do theirs, we do ours.

-They said it'd take 14 hours.

Don't eat that. Seriously, it's bad.

We threw the first couple of batches out.

The filter.

What about crushed?

These guys are funded.

-These guys are.... What?

-Liquid helium. These guys are funded.

That's what this is.

That's the whole difference.

That's what the box is.

We don't have to play the game

where we're going back and forth...

coming up with innovative ways to make it

colder and unusable in the process.

-Aaron, I need the hexagonal set.

-This is unmarketable.

By coming at it from the back end,

ratherthan changing...

the surrounding temperature,

we'll change the level it'll conduct...

the transition temperature.

And by bombarding these edges--

They're dropping the ceramic,

the temperature lower and lower.

It makes the ceramic less resistant

and knocks out the interior magnetic field.

What I'm saying is

we drop the box down on it.

Focus our own magnetic field to negate,

knock out with the inverse...

what's going on inside the ceramic.

That should change the transition

temperature to something we can work with.

-What are we saying that is?

-Hopefully, near room temperature.

What is that about?

The best mathematician is a lazy one?

-What did you ask for?

-I asked. I need the hexagonal set.

-What did you call it?

-Just come on.

-Are these Type One?

-The superconductors?

Yeah, they're Type One.

Is that going to be a problem?

There's plenty lying around at work,

but they're all bar coded.

-lf I have to, I'll buy the kits.

-What are you doing about the source?

What?

-I can get them.

-You can.... Are you sure?

I thought you didn't like this idea.

Buy them if you have to.

Everything else we can take care of.

What about the source here?

You know that story

about how NASA spent millions...

developing this pen that writes in zero-G?

Did you ever read that?

-And how Russia solved the problem?

-Yeah, they used a pencil.

Right, a normal wooden pencil.

It just seems like Phillip takes

the NASA route almost every time.

-Palladium?

-You've got their diagram, what does it say?

They use a ratio of platinum and palladium.

That's not necessary

with the changes I made.

They're just showing off.

If you have it, use it.

I want to get a replacement router.

-I'm putting down four ounces of palladium.

-Did Robert look at it?

-I already got his.

-I can't fix it.

-Okay. Where are you getting it?

-Wal-Mart. It's $50.

-Okay. Can you get a receipt, please?

-Yeah.

Wait, platinum or palladium

is less resistant?

-Abe? It's not a--

-Yeah, I don't care.

-So resistance doesn't matter.

-I need an aye or a yes.

-Did you jiggle the--

-The collet nut?

-Robert did it.

-Well, yes. I guess.

-Well, then, which is cheaper?

-You're not going to buy it, are you?

Well, unless you've got

a few grams of palladium lying around.

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Shane Carruth

Shane Carruth (born January 1, 1972) is an American filmmaker, screenwriter, composer, and actor. He is the writer, director, and co-star of the prize-winning science-fiction film Primer (2004), which was his debut feature. His second film, Upstream Color (2013), was an experimental science-fiction film which he wrote, directed, produced, edited, designed, and starred in. He also composed the scores for both films. In recognition of Carruth's idiosyncratic and, at times, bizarre filmmaking technique, director Steven Soderbergh told Entertainment Weekly, "I view Shane as the illegitimate offspring of David Lynch and James Cameron." more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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