The Lost Bus – Review

A harrowing true story of survival, The Lost Bus takes place during the electrical company caused fires in Paradise, California in November of 2018. What should have been a normal day turned into an unexpected inferno as old power wires collapsed off of lines, sparking in the forest floor below and creating a fiery blaze.

Bus 963 is driven by Kevin McKay (McConaughey), who while has not been a bus driver for very long, is quite dedicated to both his job and his family. His bus is a bit behind on maintenance, and he really needs some extra shifts since he is behind on medical bills for his dad, and he is taking care of his mom. Hell, even his poor dog Elvis has cancer. It’s a rough time for Kevin who is just scraping by. He tries to maintain a good relationship with his son, but non-stop work keeps his time tied up.

Thursday, November 8, 2018. Rough old power lines break down, and shocks fry up the grasses below. Smoke fills the sky. Dry and windy weather is expected for the region, with big 80mph gusts sweeping through the area. Unfortunately, that means this wind spreads the fire, and creates an uncontainable scenario for firefighters immediately on scene.

Doubly unfortunate, many people are stuck in the region and unable to properly escape. Many ultimately will become casualties to this blaze, however one school of 22 kids, and a teacher, are stuck, with no vehicle access to them. Kevin however, well, on this hectic day, he is stuck trying to balance his family obligations with his bus route, and winds up off course trying to help his family.

This confluence of events however puts Kevin in a spot to potentially be the only available vehicle to pick up the kids which are near the expanding fire. He takes off into danger and risks his life to meet up with teacher Mary Ludwig (Ferrera) and her kids.

Veteran director Paul Greengrass brings his usual intense directorial style, placing the viewer directly in the action with intimate and intense shots. The movie’s story may be basic, but the script is well-paced and focuses on small life details as well as the ravaging fiery hellscape created by this disaster. The Lost Bus is a well-done drama about a tragic fire, and some heroic deeds done by ordinary people to save as many lives as they could.