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Who Killed the Electric Car?

  • 20062006
  • PGPG
  • 1h 32m
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
13K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
Home Video Trailer from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Play trailer2:14
1 Video
66 Photos
  • Documentary

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
    • Chris Paine
  • Writer
    • Chris Paine
  • Stars
    • Martin Sheen(voice)
    • Tom Hanks(archive footage)
    • Mel Gibson
Top credits
  • Director
    • Chris Paine
  • Writer
    • Chris Paine
  • Stars
    • Martin Sheen(voice)
    • Tom Hanks(archive footage)
    • Mel Gibson
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 154User reviews
    • 74Critic reviews
    • 70Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 4 nominations

    Videos1

    Who Killed the Electric Car?
    Trailer 2:14
    Who Killed the Electric Car?

    Photos66

    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Mel Gibson in Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Bob Hope and Phyllis Diller in Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Martin Sheen
    Martin Sheen
    • Narratoras Narrator
    • (voice)
    Tom Hanks
    Tom Hanks
    • Selfas Self
    • (archive footage)
    Mel Gibson
    Mel Gibson
    • Selfas Self
    Reverend Gadget
    • Selfas Self
    Dave Barthmuss
    • Selfas Self
    Ed Begley Jr.
    Ed Begley Jr.
    • Selfas Self
    Jim Boyd
    • Selfas Self
    Alec N. Brooks
    • Selfas Self
    Alan Cocconi
    • Selfas Self
    John R. Dabels
    • Selfas Self
    Phyllis Diller
    Phyllis Diller
    • Selfas Self
    Colette Divine
    Colette Divine
    • Selfas Self
    Tom Everhart
    • Selfas Self
    David Freeman
    • Selfas Self
    • (as S. David Freeman)
    Frank Gaffney
    • Selfas Self
    • (as Frank J. Gaffney Jr.)
    Greg Hanssen
    • Selfas Self
    Peter Horton
    Peter Horton
    • Selfas Self
    Leslie Kendall
    • Selfas Self
    • Director
      • Chris Paine
    • Writer
      • Chris Paine
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit
    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
    • energy
    • renewable energy
    • car battery
    • car
    • electric car
    • 24 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • 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
      • Documentary
    • Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
      • Rated PG for brief mild language
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The 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.

    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Superman Returns/Monster House/The Devil Wears Prada/Strangers with Candy/Who Killed the Electric Car? (2006)
    • Soundtracks
      Jane's Theme from THE 13th FLOOR
      Composed by Harald Kloser

      Courtesy of Centropolis Entertainment

    User reviews154

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    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•21
    9
    • salorkent
    • Jun 15, 2007

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 4, 2006 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • EV Confidential
    • Filming locations
      • Willow Springs International Motorsports Park, Rosamond, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Plinyminor
      • Electric Entertainment
      • Papercut Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • 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
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 32 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.75 : 1

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