A Moment in the Sun

So this is a story about a crazy idea that, as it turns out, wasn't so crazy after all. Long before Musk and the rise of Tesla, Dr. Ortabasi and a handful of other scientific pioneers had a vision of selling us a future with vehicles utilizing clean energy generated by the sun. The film shows how of he and his team managed to overcome everything from apathy to outright hostility (and broken wheels) in their pursuit of this dream. Too bad they were so far ahead of the curve. We'd be in a much better place today if people had listened back then.

A very fascinating and touching story, told through the eyes of his son. This invention looks like some implausible idea you would dream up as a child, but could never exist in the real world. Somehow this guy found a way to build it. I was impressed by the main character's stubborn determination. He simply would not give up at any price. Ultimately, the same trait that was his strength also turned out to be his weakness, namely his utter inflexibility. This story was a wild ride, both figuratively and literally. I felt torn over whether this fellow was a visionary genius, or an obsessive madman. Perhaps he was a little of both.

A very fascinating and touching story, told through the eyes of his son. This invention looks like some implausible idea you would dream up as a child, but could never exist in the real world. Somehow this guy found a way to build it. I was impressed by the main character's stubborn determination. He simply would not give up at any price. Ultimately, the same trait that was his strength also turned out to be his weakness, namely his utter inflexibility. This story was a wild ride, both figuratively and literally. I felt torn over whether this fellow was a visionary genius, or an obsessive madman. Perhaps he was a little of both.

So this is a story about a crazy idea that, as it turns out, wasn't so crazy after all. Long before Musk and the rise of Tesla, Dr. Ortabasi and a handful of other scientific pioneers had a vision of selling us a future with vehicles utilizing clean energy generated by the sun. The film shows how of he and his team managed to overcome everything from apathy to outright hostility (and broken wheels) in their pursuit of this dream. Too bad they were so far ahead of the curve. We'd be in a much better place today if people had listened back then.