I was watching the DVD the other day for "Mission Impossible III." I thought it was really interesting that in one of the opening sequences, a huge wind farm is featured in an action scene. In the scene, the helicopter containing Tom Cruise's character is being chased by another helicopter. The helicopters weave in and out of the wind turbines, with the other helicopter eventually crashing into one. The following scene shows one of the huge turbines crashing down.

Even though the scene is brief and uses the turbines in a rather menacing way to some extent, the turbines could also be seen as saving the good guy, by blocking the enemy helicopter. On a different level, I thought the scene was interesting in that it serves as a sign of our times. Although this scene contained the usual shootings and explosions, this scene also showed something more complex--i.e. an intricate, synchronized set of steel turbines, moving in the wind, as the small (by comparison) helicopters tried to navigate through them. It demonstrated that alternative energy souces, like wind energy, can be powerful forces to reckon with. There was a time, even a decade ago, where you might see a burning oil rig or another fossil fuel source in an action sequence, but a wind turbine or solar power source would be unheard of. A popular movie like this shows that there is more mainstream understanding and acceptance for alternative energy, like wind power, in this day and age. Hopefully in the future, we will see more solar power, more wind power, more hydrogen fuel cells, etc. featured in films. If these concepts can become fixtures in our popular culture, the general public will likely embrace them with less fear and apprehension.