Generally recognized as the film which introduced the cinema-verité style of documentary filmmaking, Primary is politics at its most exposed—the Democratic Party campaign during the Wisconsin primary of 1960. The camera tracks candidates Hubert Humphrey and John F. Kennedy on their rounds of shaking hands and giving speeches. With the acuity and cool analysis of political journalists, the film attempts an objective view, letting the candidates act out their strategies, giving equal time to each, and allowing viewers to decide for themselves.