The Lost Bus
2025
***½
Director: Paul Greengrass
Cast: Matthew McConaughey, America Ferrera, Yul Vazquez, Ashlie Atkinson, Danny Ramirez, Bryce Gheisar, Omar Leyva, Brittany Bryant, Paul Ben-Victor, Kayli Carter
Kevin, a troubled and inexperienced school bus driver, must put his personal issues aside and transport a teacher and 22 children to safety as a fast-moving wildfire cuts off escape routes and throws the small town of Paradise into chaos. With works like Bloody Sunday, United 93, and Captain Phillips, Paul Greengrass has proved himself to be a master of fact-based docudramas. This true story about courage in the face of overwhelming circumstances takes place during the 2018 Camp Fire, which became the deadliest fire in California history. Once the action begins, this is a gripping human drama with very impressive special effects. Before that, however, we must sit through some facepalm-worthy personal issues/disaster movie tropes (Kevin is desperate to deliver medicine to his ill 15-year-old son, who can't keep anything down anyway). Based on the non-fiction book Paradise: One Town’s Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire by Lizzie Johnson.
