Shadows on the Wall | The Lost Bus

The Lost Bus

dir Paul Greengrass
scr Brad Ingelsby, Paul Greengrass
prd Jason Blum, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brad Ingelsby, Gregory Goodman
with Matthew McConaughey, America Ferrera, Yul Vazquez, Ashlie Atkinson, Kimberli Flores, Levi McConaughey, Kay McConaughey, Kate Wharton, Danny McCarthy, Spencer Watson, Nathan Gariety, Olivia Darling Busby
release US 19.Sep.25,
UK 3.Oct.25
25/US Apple 2h09

TORONTO FILM FEST

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As usual, filmmaker Paul Greengrass adds a restless authenticity to this true-life thriller that makes it unusually gripping, putting the audience right in the middle of the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California's history. At the centre is an against-all-odds escape involving two out-of-their-depth adults and 22 young children, and it's staged skilfully in a documentary style that continually ramps up the intensity.

On a dry, windy day in Northern California, sparks ignite dry grass due to downed power lines. The blaze spreads quickly in the direction of a collection of isolated communities and the town of Paradise. School bus driver Kevin (McConaughey) is worried about his ageing mother and surly 15-year-old son (played by McConaughey's mother Kay and son Levi), but is diverted to help teacher Mary (Ferrera) get her students to an evacuation centre, where they can be reunited with their parents. But the roads are clogged, and flames begin to engulf everything around the bus.

Seamlessly mixing in archival footage, Greengrass creates a bracingly realistic vibe as he cuts between Kevin's bus, his tenacious dispatch operator Ruby (Atkinson) and fire chief Martinez (Vazquez), who is struggling to get on top of this situation, eventually deciding that firefighters should prioritise saving lives rather than battling the fire. This is the kind of movie that works best in a cinema, as the visceral imagery and sound create an astonishingly engulfing sense of peril.

Performances are raw and full of earthy emotion, adding to the urgency. McConaughey cleverly twists his loose persona to convey Kevin's general sense of aimlessness in life, so his heroic actions feel instinctual, emerging from somewhere unexpected inside him. This adds a superb kick to his interaction with Ferrara's more intentional Mary, as they must work together to both survive this ordeal and keep the terrified children from panicking. Several people play themselves around the edges, adding to the realism.

As he did with United 93, Greengrass frames an almost unspeakable real-life event through a very human perspective, keeping everything grounded. The shaky camerawork may sometimes begin to feel overwhelming, as does James Newton Howard's score, but the tenacity of these people comes through strongly, without ever lionising them. These are simply real people who are thrown into an insane situation. Of course the way they rise to the challenge is inspirational. More importantly, it's also thought-provoking.

themes, language, violence 15.Sep.25

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