This drama-horror-thriller film breaks down complex emotions, including grief and heartbreak, and how it pushes people away from their loved ones into a deep, dark hole from which they are unable to get out. Written and directed by Thabiso Christopher, this drama-thriller-horror film stars Richard Gau, Nomsa Twala, Jasmine Hazi, Michael Lawrence Potter, Sharon Spiegel Wagner, Llewellyn Cordier, Gérard Rudolf and others. With a runtime of 94 minutes, the film is uncomfortable as you watch a man’s mental state going down a spiral.
For most of its runtime, Prime is a very long, music-less discussion surrounding one’s relationship with God, what religion and faith mean and Marius seeing things and having lapses in time. He’s a pompous and arrogant man who, in spite of his declining mental stability, refuses to break. The total breakdown of communication between him and Thembi is an ongoing portion of the movie but not one that started with the movie – it’s clearly been an ongoing portion that weighs heavy on the characters and the audience.
There’s a heavy air of heartbreak, despair and anguish throughout the runtime, and it’s uncomfortable to watch the movie and Marius making one mistake after another. Although this is all fine and dandy on paper, the film, for most of its runtime, features long monologues and non-linear storytelling that will leave you thoroughly confused and unable to understand what it is trying to say. The Netflix description doesn’t help, and the 20 things the movie is trying to showcase using a thousand different symbolisms become very tiring and boring after a while.
There’s a religious part of the movie, where apparently everything that Marius, who doesn’t want to be like his father but is very much exactly like him, goes through is because of a female Demon. I didn’t understand why this was used in a tale about trauma because, standing in the 21st century, it feels forced and unnecessary. Men’s woes are definitely not because of the horrible women who are open to having sex anywhere and everywhere influencing them, and in the case of the movie, Marius’ woes surrounding his mother’s death would’ve definitely become a little easier had he gone through intensive therapy.
Personally, there are too many threads in the movie that don’t make sense or gel together, and the Demon thing will rile most people up. This isn’t some horror movie but is rather a sad tale of a mentally unwell man trying to keep it together but losing everything in the process. Unfortunately, its 94-minute-long runtime shows too much too deeply, ending up in nothing really making sense or creating the impact that one might expect and leaving you annoyed in the process.
Prime (2023) Review: Final Thoughts
Netflix’s newest addition is an unnecessary and confusing watch that will definitely not reach you if you go by Netflix’s misleading description. I think there’s merit in showcasing Marius’s slow descent into madness after he didn’t address the trauma of his mother’s death. However, the way it was showcased was completely unnecessary, sort of crass and steeped in religion, which felt forced. Had the movie honed in on the mental health side of it, it would’ve been a hopeless, sad and most importantly relatable real tale of trauma and grief that would’ve made a better impact.
The movie is streaming on Netflix right now.
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