Overview

• The film centers on a bus driver played by Matthew McConaughey and a teacher played by America Ferrera who attempt to evacuate children during the 2018 wildfire.
• Reviewers commend Greengrass’s immersive, vérité approach, with tense cinematography by Pål Ulvik Rokseth and an enveloping sound design underscored by James Newton Howard.
• Multiple outlets note significant dramatization, including composited characters and reshaped escape sequences, and advise viewing it as a fictionalized action thriller.
• Yul Vazquez appears as a composite Cal Fire battalion chief to convey firefighting strategy and bureaucratic challenges during the disaster.
• Following its TIFF debut and limited theatrical opening, the film is set to stream on Apple TV+ on October 3.