Night Bus (2022) – Review/ Summary (with Spoilers)

In this unfolding mystery, you may find yourself underestimating what will happen – thus leading to your mouth gaping by the end.

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Director(s)	Joe Hsieh
Screenplay By	Joe Hsieh
Date Released	1/20/2022
Where To Watch	Film Festival (Sundance Film Festival)
Genre(s)	Crime, Drama, Mystery, Animation, Non-English (Taiwanese and Mandarin Chinese)
Duration	20 Minutes
Content Rating	Not Rated
Noted Cast
Driver	Ming-Hsiu Tsai
Rich Lady	Shu-Fang Chen
Husband	Shing-Ming Wang
Wife	Yu-fang Lee
Strange Guy	Guo Shang-Sing
Coal Miner	Pi-Li Yeh

Film Summary

It’s the last bus of the night, and it is comprised of the driver, a seemingly wealthy woman, a couple, two coal miners, and a rather strange acting guy. Together they journey to an unknown destination until the wealthy woman believes she is robbed, which becomes the beginning of the end for many.

Cast & Character Guide

Please Note: This is not an exhaustive list of every cast member.

Driver

Just a man doing his job, who gets annoyed at the various events which could throw him off schedule

Rich Lady

With a claim that something happened to her vehicle, you can tell the rich lady is perturbed to be schlepping it with common folk

Husband

Quiet, reserved, but ready for action when called to do so, the husband tries to play a masculine role in his relationship

Wife

Demure, pregnant, and holding a secret, watch this one

Strange Acting Guy

From the start, there are red flags about this strange acting guy, and you’ll figure out why by the end

Coal Miners

Honestly, they are just two men who do as they are told and are monetarily rewarded for it by the rich lady.

Other Noteworthy Information

• Reason(s) for Film Rating: Cursing, blood, animal cruelty, depiction of abuse, gore

Review

Highlights

The Shocking Twists And Ending

I’m not going to lie to you, I was judgmental when this started. I saw the animation, which wasn’t the kind I was used to, and so expectations were lowered. In a way, this was a good thing, for as each person’s story unravels and you learn what they are capable of, it allows you to be shocked by what happens.

To get into specifics, from the way the wealthy woman acts and gets everyone to react as she wants to the story of the wife and husband and the background of the strange guy, these people will leave you stunned. Not in some grand, Agatha Christie, big-time mystery way. However, as the violence begins and the reveals, your mouth will be left open, and the only thing which may come out is “Oh s***.”

Overall

Our Rating: Positive (Worth Seeing) – Recommended

The Night Bus is the epitome of not judging a production by the visuals. It may not be a style commonly used, but it allows for expression, ultimately does great things for the story, and it is more of an issue you might have than it being an actual negative, in any aspect you can fathom. But, calling ourselves out aside, it has one of the best stories from the animated shorts we’ve seen, and it’s probably one of the only productions, in the entire festival, that left us with our mouth gaping without the reason being race-related.

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