A Scientist at the Movies Reviews by Greg Paris

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Title: Primer

Date Viewed: 10/17/04

Details:

Shane Carruth

David Sullivan

Written & directed by: Shane Carruth

Score: 1/2

The Review: At first you think you're watching a documentary re-enactment of the beginnings of Hewlett-Packard -- in their garage, white shirts and ties, electronic gadgets galore -- but then the scale of circuitry and problems becomes clear and you jolt into the present day. A pair of scientist / physicists / engineers are working privately on what they expect to be an antigravity process, but it's the unexpected collateral effects of their initial success that make things really interesting -- and (to the audience) very confusing! The final result is a mainstay chestnut of the science-fiction genre, but you are brought into it so laterally, that even being prepared for the oddity you might be surprised. Unless, of course, you've already read some of the less careful reviews..., which, like inappropriate trailers, should come with blinking spoiler warnings.

The portrayal of the research process -- the incremental, painfully saltatory and occasionally accidental advancement of science and engineering -- is quite well done.

Production values are minimal to nonexistent; it looks like much was hand-held under low-light (hence grainy). The plot setup and initial scenes seem pointless and wandering; this eventually changes, but you have to be patient. The dialog is at times so multi-threaded and soft as to be confusing & difficult to follow. Given the premise and developing plot, there has to be at least one cinematographic "key / trick" used to forward (and backward) the action and identify different sequences, but I'm not sure I picked up on what it is.

In the past, I've seldom had the opportunity to catch indie or art films; with my proximity to one of Boston's finest, this may now change.

(6-Nov-04)

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