Who Killed the Electric Car?

Director: Chris Paine

Starring: Martin Sheen, Reverend Gadget, Dave Barthmuss

We are living in an age of climate change. We’ve got global warming. Sounds like what your science teachers (or lecturers) would say. And they would probably go on and blame the car and their exhaust. For the lucky ones, your teacher may even mention a type of car that would produce no exhaust and run without gasoline, the electric car (yeah, hybrid cars still burn fuel). Sounds like a dream car of future. Unfortunately, they have already come and gone. In 1996, they were on the roads in California, now they are gone without a trace. But not really- we have this documentary addressing their murder.

Who kill the electric car? is much more than the warning documentaries you would expect in a lecture. The director and writer, Chris Paine, really put great effort in producing something alarmingly good. By focusing on the history, development and commercialisation of General Motors EV1, he is able to provide a good introduction to the car before he steps in the juicy bits (more facts!). Obviously, we have an overview of all the suspects and they are not just engineers or scientists. And surprising yet familiar suspects pop up. Things do get quite economical and political.

And thanks also goes to Paine for including an awesome soundtrack to spice things up. Martin Sheen (West Wing, The Departed) provides the narration with his famous tone that gets everyone into the topic and start judging in no time. This elegy also features a good mixture of interviewees and footage, making the film packed with more than you can think of. Famous faces appearing throughout include Mel Gibson, Tom Hanks, and of course, President Bush, and many more. They provide a scope to the topic that makes the documentary more than a one-man show. It really makes everyone emotionally attached to the cars.

So, that is a lot to think about for a potential solution for reducing global warming. As someone living in an age of climate change, I believe this should be made compulsory viewing in lectures. Time for the ghost of the electric car to haunt back after the rise of Mr Gore, and see if you can come up with a good answer to the question before the film ends.

Jeffrey Choi