This movie is based on a true crime which occurred in the small town of Chowchilla, California on July 15th, 1976. Karl Malden stars as the school bus driver Edward Ray, transporting 26 children from school to their homes. His wife, Odessa Ray is played by Julie Harris.
What struck me about this true crime story is why three (3) young men, two of which were brothers James and Richard Schoenfeld who came from respectable hard working and caring parents, would even consider kidnapping a school busload of children and how they really did not think their crime out very thoroughly. The alpha kidnapper, Frederick Newhall Woods IV, parents inherited a considerable amount of property from Fred's grandparents so Fred was born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth and never understood nor appreciated the hard work his parents required to sustain and grow the family fortune.
If I could criticize one aspect of the films weakness is it did not accentuate the fear these children must have endured while being buried underground in the gravel pit owned by Frederick Newhall Woods IV's family.
I will not provide any spoiler as to how the film ends but since it is based on a true story Wikipedia will provide the details which I suggest you do not read until after watching this film so as not to be influenced on your opinion of the film.
It was a well done true crime film worthy of a 7 out of 10 IMDb rating. Kudos to Karl Malden, Julie Harris, and the 14-year-old hero Michael Marshall whose name does not appear in the film credits all were excellent in their respective roles.
