I hate Primer. (090102)

Watching the movie Primer for the first and only time made me feel stupid as an audience. For once, I never felt so clueless and doubtful in understanding a movie in my whole entire life. In my opinion, the movie was selfish for not making the audience get a full grasp in comprehending the film. I feel that a film is made for the purpose of to be watched by, if not the general public, majority of people from different backgrounds and classes. The movie is supposed to be made not only to be appreciated by the makers, but by their audience. A film is not meant to be stored inside a container, it’s meant to be presented, watched, and enjoyed as any form of entertainment there is out there.

I cannot understand why it was somehow made difficult to understand on purpose and why so. For me, I really felt betrayed since I wanted to appreciate the movie, even forcing myself to be, but it was impossible. I somehow realized that in order to understand and appreciate it, I might go to the depths of watching it several times and maybe doing some research which is such a hassle and a waste of my time if I don’t really like the film in the first place. If the movie is already selfish enough in not making me comprehend what I’m seeing and hearing, why would I spend my time in making an effort to appreciate it, or worst, even loving it? Maybe the only reason why I would watch this film until the end is because it is required in class and I have no choice but to do it. And what frustrates me more is that I have backgrounds in video filming, production, writing screenplays, and having a decent educational background but why do even I cannot understand it? It seems surreal, unconventional, and deviant for me. I’m a fan of films of all sorts, and for me I feel so betrayed and violated.

The film, even in the midst of all my frustrations, I can still find some positivity in it. First it was done in a simple budget production with only several people involved in making it. This was done in a way to show how a science-fiction concept can be done or be present in the real world. Second, the film was executed strategically in a way that they actually challenged the way a typical science-fiction movie was made, without the usual stereotypical special effects. And lastly, it only had a small number of casts challenged to develop very deep and complex characters. With that in mind, I really hoped that they would do better next time and become more humble in making the film.

I just hope everyone is given the chance to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the film just like the people involved in the production process of this film, from the writers to the director to the actors, etc. If only they were more charitable and generous for their audiences…