Who Killed the Electric Car? does not hide its bias (its right there in the title) as it follows the birth, brief life, and death of General Motor's EV1 electric car. There are a wealth of interviews in the film, from former EV1 drivers, members of the development team, politicians, General Motors spokespeople, politicians, and celebrities such as a crazed looking Mel Gibson. It also has a good soundtrack and clever organization.
Without feigning objectivity, the film contains a list of "suspects"(consumers, batteries, oil companies, car companies, government, California air resources board, and hydrogen fuel cells) which the filmmakers "investigate" then proceed to render verdicts on. This is a far cry from traditional documentaries which simply capture action as it occurs with the purpose of maintaining an objective distance. Not only did the filmmakers have a motive in making this film, but they also entered their own opinions directly into the piece.
Without feigning objectivity, the film contains a list of "suspects"(consumers, batteries, oil companies, car companies, government, California air resources board, and hydrogen fuel cells) which the filmmakers "investigate" then proceed to render verdicts on. This is a far cry from traditional documentaries which simply capture action as it occurs with the purpose of maintaining an objective distance. Not only did the filmmakers have a motive in making this film, but they also entered their own opinions directly into the piece.
The film certainly covers a lot of ground in an hour and a half and some of the evidence it presents is persuasive to say the least. I myself feel very strongly about environmental issues and this film definitely upset me. If we have the technology to produce these cars we should be doing so. There are batteries with capacities which more than compensate for the daily driving needs of most Americans, yet there are no electric cars on the road. The addition of electric cars into the market could have a profound impact on our carbon emissions in this country. At the very least, hybrid plug ins should already be widespread considering how attainable and plausible this technology is.
Despite the fact that I know Who Killed the Electric Car? has a biased point of view, I was still convinced by this film. It appealed to me on an emotional and intellectual level enough to make me want to take some kind of action. Today's documentary films do not necessarily have to resemble National Geographic programs. Our concept of what it means to be a documentary film has broadened as rhetoric has entered the picture more and more explicitly.
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