Here’s another film from the old DVR, this one recorded off the El Rey Network. One of the saddest things about cutting the cable cord was not being able to watch El Rey on a regular basis as they had quite an eclectic line-up of movies. Bus Driver was part of a morning block I recorded that includes two Shaw Brothers Kung Fu flicks I hope to review very soon.
Bus Driver is a fun and surprising low budget actioner that is a real sleeper. The only names in the cast are Robert Forster, who plays a general, and Michael Bailey (The Hills Have Eyes remake) Smith as the villainess’ right-hand man. It’s kind of like a roadside variation of a Die Hard clone. Instead of the wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time guy being a cop, it’s a bus driver. There’s also an element of First Blood too as the hero everyone assumes to be just an ordinary citizen happens to be a former super soldier with a deadly skill set.
Said bus driver (Steve Daron) is hauling a bunch of disciplinary problems around in a school bus on a field trip. When the bus gets a flat tire, they go to a nearby ranch for help. Naturally, that’s where a mess of drug dealers are hiding out. When the kids uncover their stash, the leader (Holly Elissa) orders her goons to kill them. Of course, the only one who can save the day is the seemingly unremarkable bus driver who unbeknownst to everyone used to be a kick-ass soldier before he started driving buses.
Daron underplays the hero role and is a bit one-note, but that only helps to perfectly set up his character. Once he starts to kick ass, he does start to have something of a screen presence, but not much. Elissa’s villainess character is well done though as she proves to be an interesting foil for Daron. Unfortunately, Forster only appears in the end as the Col. Trautman-like character in a scene that looks like it was intended to set up a sequel (which I would totally be down for). It’s Steven Chase who steals the movie though, giving a fun performance as the foulmouthed chaperone “Gooch”. We also get a great turn by Olivia Alexander as the sexy slut of the group who sexts everyone topless pics of herself and engages in a completely gratuitous but totally awesome sex scene.
This scene just serves to underline that Bus Driver isn’t meant to be taken seriously for a second. It also wastes no time getting down to the nitty gritty, which is greatly appreciated. It’s only 75 minutes long, and it only takes about 15 of them before the boobies, bullets, and blood starts flying. Director Brian Herzlinger does a nice job on the action scenes given the budgetary restraints. I especially liked the sequences that rewind and fast forward so the audience can see just how resourceful our hero can be.
I thought Herzlinger’s name sounded familiar, so I looked him up on IMDb. I was shocked to find out he’s the guy who made that My Date with Drew movie where he basically stalked Drew Barrymore. As it turns out he also … uh… directed My Truth: The Rape of the Two Coreys. I haven’t seen those two movies, but if Bus Driver is any indication, Herzlinger should probably stick to making fun action-comedies like this one.
Like its main character, Bus Driver doesn’t look like much, but it’s got it where it counts. Beyond its unassuming exterior lies a fun little B picture with a sense of humor. It knows exactly what it is and how to get the job done. You have to respect that.
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