Who Killed the Electric Car?
A lack of consumer confidence... or conspiracy?
2006 | 92m | English
Popularity: 12 (history)
| Director: | Chris Paine |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Chris Paine |
| Staring: |
| 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. | |
| Release Date: | Aug 04, 2006 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Chris Paine |
| Writer: | Chris Paine |
| Genres: | Documentary |
| Keywords | energy supply, automobile industry |
| Production Companies | Electric Entertainment, Plinyminor, Papercut Films |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $1,678,874
Budget: $1,000,000 |
| Updates |
Updated: Feb 01, 2025 Entered: Apr 14, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Martin Sheen | Narrator (voice) |
| Mel Gibson | Self |
| Chelsea Sexton | Self |
| Tom Hanks | Self (archive footage) |
| Reverend Gadget | Self (as Greg 'Gadget' Abbott) |
| Ed Begley Jr. | Self |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Chris Paine | Writer, Director |
| Alex Gibney | Consulting Producer |
| Name | Title |
|---|
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 6 |
| 2024 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 7 |
| 2024 | 6 | 10 | 19 | 6 |
| 2024 | 7 | 13 | 23 | 7 |
| 2024 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 8 |
| 2024 | 9 | 13 | 22 | 8 |
| 2024 | 10 | 11 | 26 | 5 |
| 2024 | 11 | 11 | 21 | 7 |
| 2024 | 12 | 10 | 19 | 7 |
| 2025 | 1 | 9 | 11 | 7 |
| 2025 | 2 | 7 | 12 | 3 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 10 | 1 | 12 | 1 |
Trending Position
Interesting albeit very biased perspective on early electric car attempts. The film could have spent more time on describing the older electric car technology -- I was unaware that in the early 1900s there were, in fact, already cars that didn't run just on gasoline. I found it laughable when, near ... the end of the movie, the creators assess that essentially everyone, including car companies, oil companies, CARB, even consumers (!) are to blame for electric's downfall. I think you could convince me of car & oil companies, but it's a real stretch to say that a regulator that simply didn't adopt stricter guidelines 'killed' an industry, or that people did because they didn't buy this amazing product. Overall, OK, but would not recommend unless you're really into electric cars.