Who Killed the Electric Car?

Once upon a time, there was an electric car, but now there is not. So what happened? Wheres the story? Who Killed the Electric Car? This film is a documentary discussing the rise and fall of the electric car and who/what factors are to blame. Nick Schager of Slant Magazine gives a review that I found myself siding with ( http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/who-killed-the-electric-car/2204). He comments that the film "attempts to humanize the vehicle, including a silly mock funeral staged by vocal supporters and a former GM employee's sad visit to a car museum to visit on of her 'babies.'" The film attempted to give life to car that I actually hardly remember being on the road. I found it very hard to connect to the film because of the fact that I was not old enough to remember the actual debates of the car. However, the film did make excellent points towards the forces that often contribute to these decisions. It brought up several "culprits" of who is responsible for the elimination of the vehicle: from oil companies to the government to a competing Hydrogen Fuel Cell studies. Each group had aspects in which they were responsible. As in the situation of the electric car, we can see these same groups dominating our culture today, from the government to the consumers. They have such power over so many areas. In the film, we saw protests try and act against the decisions to eliminate the electric car, and they were very unsuccessful. After watching the film, however, I felt a bit frustrated. My group discussed how much more aware we became after watching this film. I realized how much power some groups have, but how everyone has a hand in the process. The government, oil companies, competing alternatives, and consumers all have some power in today's capitalism. It is our job to become aware and stand up for what we believe. As Schager says, "Such drippy sentimentality, however, can't overshadow the inescapable impression left by Pain'es timely doc that, when it comes to pointing fingers over our highways' glut of inefficient SUVs and Hummers, everyone's partially to blame."