With Musk very much in the news, "Crash Course" offers a window into this inordinately outspoken and controversial billionaire and the corporate culture that he fosters. Yet more urgently, it raises questions about the safety of Tesla owners when they employ Autopilot now, not where they'll be two years from now.

Elon Musk’s Crash Course is yet another example of how The New York Times Presents concisely presents complicated news stories in a fast-moving, compelling package that gives viewers more than enough depth to understand the issue and who the players are.

What makes Elon Musk's Crash Course really worth watching is the way it uses its material to dig into the ways the collision of celebrity and capitalism can have a dangerous effect on the public good.

Two takeaways seem undeniable. The first is that Musk has overhyped the technology and presented aspiration as accomplished fact. ... The second is that a whole happy world of self-driving cars is a long way off.

What this documentary shows us isn't encouraging, even as it helps us to better comprehend the thinking of a man described as wanting to "make a dent in the world."