A documentary that investigates the birth and death of the electric car, as well as the role of renewable energy and sustainable living in the future.A documentary that investigates the birth and death of the electric car, as well as the role of renewable energy and sustainable living in the future.A documentary that investigates the birth and death of the electric car, as well as the role of renewable energy and sustainable living in the future.
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
13K
YOUR RATING
- Director
- Writer
- Stars
- Martin Sheen(voice)
- Tom Hanks(archive footage)
- Mel Gibson
Top credits
- Director
- Writer
- Stars
- Martin Sheen(voice)
- Tom Hanks(archive footage)
- Mel Gibson
- Awards
- 4 nominations
Videos1
Tom Hanks
- Selfas Self
- (archive footage)
David Freeman
- Selfas Self
- (as S. David Freeman)
Frank Gaffney
- Selfas Self
- (as Frank J. Gaffney Jr.)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- See more cast details at IMDbPro
Storyline
With gasoline prices approaching $4/gallon, fossil fuel shortages, unrest in oil producing regions around the globe and mainstream consumer adoption and adoption of the hybrid electric car (more than 140,000 Prius' sold this year), this story couldn't be more relevant or important. The foremost goal in making this movie is to educate and enlighten audiences with the story of this car, its place in history and in the larger story of our car culture and how it enables our continuing addiction to foreign oil. This is an important film with an important message that not only calls to task the officials who squelched the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate, but all of the other accomplices, government, the car companies, Big Oil, even Eco-darling Hydrogen as well as consumers, who turned their backs on the car and embrace embracing instead the SUV. Our documentary investigates the death and resurrection of the electric car, as well as the role of renewable energy and sustainable living in our country's future; issues which affect everyone from progressive liberals to the neo-conservative right. —Richard D. Titus
- Taglines
- In 1996, electric cars began to appear on roads all over California. They were quiet and fast, produced no exhaust and ran without gasoline...........Ten years later, these cars were destroyed.
- Genre
- Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
- Rated PG for brief mild language
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaThe boxy, small EV shown being crushed in the movie was the Honda EV-Plus. They, like the sleek GM EV-1, were only available for lease; several returned to Honda, and were converted into fuel cell demonstration vehicles. For a while, you were able to lease them through EV Rentals (at several Budget Rent a Car locations).
- Quotes
Mel Gibson: Who writes the history? Um, well... The guy with the biggest club.
Top review
A very good documentary that put its biases up front
I'm neither a liberal or a conservative (yes, there are other options!)and while I expected to read the usual 'party lines' concerning the politics of this movie ... I was AMAZED at how many people missed the point of the movie. This wasn't, at its heart, a movie about the politics of energy. Rather, it was a human story about people who found, and even fell in love, with a preferred form of transportation, only to have it taken away from them against their will. ***CAUTION --- POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD*** I don't think what I'm about to say will spoil the movie experience, but I decided to play it safe. The most amazing part of the story, to me, concerns the quiet battle between General Motors and the EV1 lessees who wanted desperately to keep their vehicles. Why did GM take such a hard core approach? It seemed to me a more conciliatory approach would have done the embattled auto-maker a world of good. To me, that was the question that drove the story. Yes, most of the people who apparently leased one of GM's electric cars were celebrities and/or people of some measure of wealth. So what? Anyone who likes electronic gadgetry has heard the expression "early adopter," referring to those with money who purchase state-of-the-art equipment at high prices, thereby fueling the development and investment that pushes products to consumer-level pricing. GM's inability to realize this is what makes the whole story fascinating. I encourage anyone who would, to watch the movie closely, and see If this doesn't ring true. Now, having said my piece about the movie, let me throw some comments about energy policy into the fray. 1) We absolutely, positively need gas to reach a price of $5 a gallon or more. Why? Supply and demand. Only when it HURTS to drive a gas guzzler, will most of us finally get off that doomed bandwagon. 2) We had a solution to coal produced electricity in our laps twenty years ago, and a piece of Hollywood drivel ("The China Syndrome")turned us into weenies. Yes, folks, I mean nuclear power. It CAN and IS producing power safely, and environmentally soundly. Just not here in the U.S., by and large. Finally, 3) Supporting the development of electric-only cars is a viable choice. With the improvements being made in solar panel technology, I suspect a working battery-solar hybrid may be a very real option in the NEAR future. If we avoid the stupidity this movie helps us to understand.
helpful•219
- salorkent
- Jun 15, 2007
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- EV Confidential
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,678,874
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $45,138
- Jul 2, 2006
- Gross worldwide
- $1,764,304
- Runtime1 hour 32 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.75 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content

Top Gap
By what name was Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006) officially released in Canada in English?
AnswerRecently viewed
Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.