The Lost Bus

2025 Apple Original Films

Rated: R

Length: 2 hr 9min

Drama ~ Survival ~ Thriller ~ True Story

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, America Ferrera, Yul Vazquez, and Ashlie Atkinson.

Inspired By The True Story Of Survival.

The Lost Bus on Apple TV+ grips from the start as a harrowing true-story survival thriller, directed by Paul Greengrass and starring Matthew McConaughey as Kevin McKay, a down-on-his-luck school bus driver in Paradise, California. Set against the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in state history, the film thrusts McKay into chaos when flames erupt during a routine school run, forcing him to evacuate 22 elementary kids with the help of quick-thinking teacher Mary Ludwig, played by America Ferrera. Greengrass’s kinetic, handheld style immerses viewers in the smoke-choked inferno, where every decision means life or death amid crumbling infrastructure and zero visibility.

McConaughey delivers a powerhouse performance, channeling raw vulnerability and grit as a flawed everyman rising to heroism, his Oklahoma drawl adding authentic texture to the role. Ferrera shines as the composed educator whose calm anchors the kids’ panic, their chemistry fueling tense, heartfelt exchanges that humanize the disaster. Supporting turns from young actors portraying the children bring genuine terror and resilience, while cameos like Steve Zahn add grounded support without stealing focus.

Technically, the film excels in building relentless suspense through practical effects and sound design, the roar of flames and kids’ cries create palpable dread, though some CGI fire sequences feel slightly artificial. Greengrass, known for United 93 and Captain Phillips, masterfully blends real-time urgency with emotional depth, exploring themes of community and redemption without veering into melodrama. Pacing never lags, clocking in at a taut 129 minutes that leaves you breathless.

Overall, The Lost Bus stands as a top-tier disaster drama with its pulse-pounding action, stellar leads, and inspirational true events. Perfect for thriller enthusiasts craving high-stakes heroism like 127 Hours, it’s a must-watch on Apple TV+.

Caught Stealing

2025 Sony Pictures Releasing

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 47min

Crime ~ Comedy ~ Thriller

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky

Starring: Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Benito Martínez Ocasio, Griffin Dunne, Carol Kane, Yuri Kolokolnikov and Nikita Kukushkin.

2 Russians, 2 Jews And A Puerto Rican Walk Into A Bar….

Caught Stealing is based on The Crime Novel of the same name by American author Charlie Huston, first published on January 1, 2004.

Henry “Hank” Thompson (Austin Butler) is a bartender living in New York’s Lower East Side. He is a washed up former Baseball Player whose major league ambitions were dashed in a drunken car wreck. Hank survived, but his best friend was killed, and it left Hank with a lot of guilt as well as a drinking problem. After closing the bar and heading home to his apartment, he meets his Punk Rock neighbor Russ (Matt Smith) in the hallway. He tells Hank that his father died and he has to fly to London immediately. He asks him to watch his cranky cat, Bud while he is gone. Hank protests but Russ won’t here of it, forces the cat and the key on him and leaves. It seems simple enough but things go south fast when a pair of brutal Russian mobsters (Yuri Kolokolnikov and Nikita Kukushkin) show up looking for Russ, beating Hank so badly he ends up in the hospital in emergency surgery losing a kidney.

A narcotics detective named Elise Roman (Regina King) questions him and hints at Russ’s shady drug connections to the infamous Hasidic Drucker brothers (Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio). Hank denies that he did anything wrong and tells her that Russ only asked him to watch his cat, and he has no idea why the mobsters beat him so savagely. Hank’s girlfriend Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz) assists Hank back to his apartment after being released. Back home Hank discovers a mysterious key stashed in Bud’s litter box hidden in fake plastic cat poop. He decides to go down to the bar to talk to his boss about missing two days while he was in the hospital. He calls Detective Roman and tells her about the key and proceeds to tie one on while he processes recent events. When Hank comes to the next morning in his apartment, the two Russian Mobsters and a Puerto Rican named Colorado (Benito Martínez Ocasio aka Bad Bunny) threaten him with more violence unless he tells them where the key is.

Things go downhill quickly from there as Hank’s girlfriend Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz) gets caught in the crossfire, leaving him reeling as he dodges beatings, betrayals, and double-crosses from Roman, the Russians, and the Druckers. He hides out, retrieves clues from unexpected spots like abandoned clothes, and scrambles to protect Bud the cat while piecing together who’s after what. Everyone wants that key, and Hank’s past regrets fuel his fight to stay alive amid the chaos of the Lower East Side underworld. Bodies pile up and alliances shatter, Hank races through bars, subways, and shadowy deals, outsmarting killers with quick thinking and sheer luck. He confronts lies from those closest to the mess, weighing loyalty against survival in a city that chews up the weak. The stakes skyrocket with threats hitting personal levels, forcing Hank to tap into the grit that once made him a ballplayer.

Austin Butler shines in this gritty urban thriller, and at times it reminds me of his role in Elvis. He has a very distinctive voice full of southern charm, I honestly can’t believe he didn’t win an Oscar for that. Zoë Kravitz brings fiery vulnerability as Yvonne, Hank’s girlfriend. Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio are hilariously menacing as the two Hasidic Drucker brothers Lipa and Shmully. Caught Stealing delivers a pulpy, high-octane thrill ride through 1998 NYC’s gritty underworld, blending brutal action, dark humor, and relentless twists that keep you hooked from the first beatdown.

Highly Recommended!

Now streaming on Netflix!

Killer Heat

2024 Amazon MGM Studios

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 36min

Crime ~ Drama ~ Mystery ~ Thriller

Directed by: Philippe Lacôte

Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Shailene Woodley, and Richard Madden.

Jealousy can drive anyone to the edge.

Killer Heat is based on the short story The Jealousy Man by Jo Nesbø. It is from the 2021 book The Jealousy Man and Other Short Stories.

FROM JO NESBØ’S WEBSITE (www.jonesbo.com):

Jo Nesbo is the consummate mystery writer, and his talent for hair-raising suspense and shocking twists are on full display in this inventive and harrowing collection of stories.

A detective with a nose for jealousy is on the trail of a man suspected of murdering his twin; a woman finally overcomes her intimacy issues through a dark encounter with her Peeping Tom neighbor; a fugitive on the run in a remote corner of Norway is lured by a friendly local to what seems to be a wedding ceremony–only to find a much more macabre event.

Contained in this collection are stories of insatiable avarice, unscrupulous lovers, and heartrending fate. With Nesbo’s gift for outstanding atmosphere and complex characters, this is a veritable crime lover’s delight.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as Private Detective Nick Bali. He is a former NYPD Detective who has relocated to his father’s empty apartment in Greece following the demise of his marriage. Haunted by the memory of events that led to his failed marriage, and of his daughter, he drinks heavily to block it out. “There’s a calculus to drinking. And if I get the math right, I’ll land in the perfect blackout. No Memories.” Intense jealousy on Nick’s part led to his wife’s cheating and the end of their marriage. It also helped him be a better private Investigator when it came to investigating marital issues between a couple. Through a friend who recommends him, he is contacted by……..

Penelope Vardakis (Shailene Woodley) to investigate the death of her brother-in-law’s identical twin brother Leo Vardakis. Leo and Penelope’s husband Elias were avid rock climbers, having been climbing since childhood. Growing up on the island of Crete with all it’s cliffs was an ideal playground for the two boys. Leo had been rock climbing a cliff Free Solo, which is ascending without any ropes or equipment, relying only on his hands covered in climbing chalk and climbing shoes. He was found at the bottom of the cliff after apparently having lost his footing and dropping 30 meters (100 feet).

Nick flies to Crete where he is met by Penelope who explains that she believes her brother-in-law’s death was no accident. And given the family’s wealth and stature on the island, she has hired him to secretly investigate the murder. Penelope has arranged for him to stay anonymously at a Monastery where she is good friends with the Monks who live there. He settles in and heads to town to start investigating and immediately runs into the Vardakis Family’s influence everywhere he turns. Being a highly successful Billionaire family with generational roots in Crete, they own or have their fingers in everything including the police, the government and the politicians.

This is a Contemporary Noir Thriller complete with voice-over narration by Nick the private eye every step of the way. It feels like those old black and white private eye movies from the past. It is well shot on location in Crete, Greece and is very picturesque. It is not what my dad would call a “Bang Bang shoot ’em up”. It is more of a slow burn as Nick narrates his investigation and findings, and as the plot unfolds. It is based upon the book The Jealousy Man by Norwegian Mystery Thriller Author Jo Nesbø.

I liked Joseph and Shailene in this, I thought it was a good mystery thriller with just enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. It is a slow burn but it kept me intrigued as it went along. I have come to like Jo Nesbo and his books, I would definitely recommend them. After all, he is a New York Times Bestselling Author. I personally think he is a good writer and really have enjoyed his books, he is now one of my favorite authors. I am also a fan of this Neo-noir Slow Burn Thriller and a huge fan of Shailene Woodley, and I think you should read Jo Nesbø and watch this movie!

Fast Charlie

2023 Vertical Entertainment

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 30min

Action ~ Crime ~ Drama ~ Romance ~ Thriller

Directed by: Phillip Noyce

Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Morena Baccarin and James Caan.

Keep your friends close and your enemies dead.

Charlie Swift (Pierce Brosnan), aka Fast Charlie, is an experienced hitman working for a longtime mob boss named Stan (James Caan). Charlie is sent on a job with newbie Blade to take out a man named Rollo. Blade has planted a bomb in a box of doughnuts thinking it a genius idea, but things go wrong when the box detonates and blows Rollo’s head to smithereens. Without Rolo’s head it is impossible for Charlie to prove to the sanction of the hit, Beggar Mercado, that the hit was successful. To solve this problem, Charlie enlists the help of Marcie Kramer (Morena Baccarin), who is Rollo’s tough and calm ex-wife. She confirms the body by recognizing a tattoo, and now he has to figure out a way to convince Beggar that Rollo is dead.

Meanwhile, the young and reckless new hitman named Blade has decided to turn on Charlie and take the body and blackmail Beggar with it. When Blade dies in a chaotic accident trying to get away in Charlie’s car, Charlie cuts off Blade’s head and works with Marcie to transfer the tattoo onto Blade’s body so they can pass it off as Rollo’s, faking the proof Beggar needs. When Charlie meets Beggar with the body, he takes the bait convinced it is Rollo, and promptly chucks the body into the swamp and the alligators. He tells Charlie that he wants to meet with his boss Stan, and discuss business. When Charlie tells Stan, he tells Charlie that he wants nothing to do with Beggar…….

Which starts off a chain reaction of action and violence as Beggar tries to dominate Stan’s turf and business. Charlie is apparently the only man standing as Beggar tries to wipe out Stan’s crew, but Fast Charlie and Marcie team up to outwit Beggar and his crew. And what follows is non stop action, violence, dark comedy and romance as Charlie and Marcie fight for their lives and fall in love with each other. It is a bit of Pulp Fiction, The Equalizer and The Mechanic all rolled into one. Not too surprising since Richard Wenk wrote this as well as the screenplay for The Mechanic and The Equalizer Movies.

James Caan plays the part of aging Crime Boss Stan very well. Too well, this was James Caan’s last acting role before he passed away several months later on July 6, 2022. He was 82 years old. Pierce Brosnan did a fantastic job of playing Fast Charlie right down to the accent. Brilliant work! The chemistry between Pierce and Morena felt very natural and engaging, and made the obvious age gap between them seem like nothing t’all. I really liked Morena in this, she is quickly becoming a Streaming Movie Night favorite! She also appears in 2020’s Greenland, the upcoming Sequel Greenland: Migration and Elevation.

I thought this movie was a great little gem! It checks all the boxes for me personally and it was good to see James Caan in his last role. Pierce Brosnan and Morena Baccarin make a fantastic team on screen, and it was a great ride watching them battle it out and fall in love.

Highly Recommended!

Turn off the lights and devices,

Make some popcorn,

Grab a beverage,

and Stream This Movie

on NETFLIX!

The Equalizer

THE EQUALIZER TRILOGY: STORY & TIMELINE

Elevation

Eden

2025 Vertical

Rated: R

Length: 2 hr 9min

Adventure ~ Drama ~ Survival ~Thriller ~ True Story

Directed by: Ron Howard

Starring: Jude Law, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, Sydney Sweeney, Daniel Brühl, Felix Kammerer, Toby Wallace, and Richard Roxburgh.

Inspired by the accounts of those who survived.

If you go to google maps, wherever you are at, zoom way out until you see the continents. Then locate South America and on the northern left side you’ll see Ecuador and the equator line running through it headed west over the ocean. Slowly zoom in on Ecuador, follow the equator to the left, and they will start to appear, the first name you see will be Puerto Ayora, a city on the Island of Santa Cruz. Followed by the city of Seymour on Santa Cruz, Isla Isabela and then the thirteen main islands of The Galapagos Islands. At the bottom of the Galapagos in the center you will find the small island of Floreana, Isla Floreana. It was here in 1929 that a disillusioned Dr. Friedrich Ritter and his patient turned companion, Dore Strauch came all the way from Germany to escape the rising tide of Fascism, Adolf Hitler and The Nazi Party.

It was here in 2015 that Ron Howard came to vacation with his family and became fascinated with the story of the first eight settlers on Floreana Island and the drama, intrigue and unsolved mystery of what transpired between 1929 and 1934. The Wittmers, Heinz, Margaret and their son Henry arrived in Floreana in August 1932, also from Germany, and Baroness Eloise Wehrborn de Wagner-Bosquet and her two lovers, Rudolf Lorenz & Robert Phillipson arrived in October 1932. At the end of 1934 only Heinz, Margaret and their son Henry remained, Baroness Eloise and Robert Phillipson had vanished without a trace, Rudolf Lorenz’s mummified body was found on the northern island of San Cristobal, Friedrich Ritter had died mysteriously of food poisoning and Dore Strauch had fled back to Germany.

It is a mystery to this day what transpired on the island between the seven adults that ended with two dead and two missing. Dore Strauch wrote a book published in 1936 titled Satan Came to Eden: A Survivor’s Account of the “Galapagos Affair”, and Margaret Wittmer wrote a book published in 1959 titled Floreana: A Woman’s Pilgrimage to The Galapagos. Both books have different accounts as to what actually transpired on the island. There is a 2013 Documentary titled The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came to Eden that features photos and film footage of the inhabitants of the island. It also includes a 4 minute Silent short film filmed on the island featuring Baroness Von Wagner and Robert Phillipson, titled The Empress of Floreana.

The title alone is a clue to the drama that transpired on the island after the Baroness’ arrival. Dr. Ritter and Dore had come to the island to escape humanity, and did so living like Robison Crusoe, surviving off the island completely isolated from any other human beings. The Wittmer family changed that but Dr. Ritter, Dore and the Wittmer’s managed to keep their distance and co-inhabit the small island. It was the Baroness’s arrival with her two lovers, along with the intention of building a huge luxury hotel for the millionaires in their yachts who frequently passed by the island, that completely changed the dynamic and tore apart Friedrich and Dore’s quiet, isolated Eden.

It is this mystery and dynamic between seven adults isolated on Floreana that Ron Howard has captured in Eden. Well portrayed by Jude Law (Dr. Friedrich Ritter), Vanessa Kirby (Dore Strauch), Daniel Brühl (Heinz Wittmer), Sydney Sweeney (Margaret Wittmer), Ana de Armas (Baroness Eloise Wehrborn de Wagner-Bosquet), Toby Wallace (Robert Phillipson) and Felix Kammerer (Rudolph Lorenz), it is a fascinating look at what happened when Satan came to Eden. I think that Ron Howard and the crew did an excellent job bringing this mystery to life. It is a tantalizing, mesmerizing study of man’s desire to be alone, and the temptation and evil inherently bred into man that cannot be constrained, even on a remote island with only eight inhabitants.

Well worth a watch, as is the documentary The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came to Eden.