"The Twilight Zone (2002)" Retro Recap: "Night Route"

​Written by Scotty

There can be times when you just want to keep to yourself and not let anyone else in.  These times can be good to clear your head, but if you decide to live your entire life this way, you will be alone and never be able to figure out why.  I jump on and off of this boat quite frequently these days, but it usually only happens for a couple day period and then I am dying to talk to somebody.  It is always safer to walk with your head up and acknowledge the people in the world around you, just so they know you want to be a part of it.

Melina Kroner is living the life she always wanted.  With her dog and her fiancé, she has nothing left to prove to the world, but it seems to want something more from her.  After nearly being hit by a speeding car, Melina curses the driver and heads home, but there is someone following her on the way.  A strange bus is watching her, but she is not willing to get on and wants to get home to her fiancé Adam and let him know what happened.  Although Adam is upset she was walking the dog, he gets over it since the two are slated to be married soon and he knows that the bride to be is always right, no matter what.

While getting her dress fitted, Melina finds out that her registry has been taken out of the computer.  Not understanding what that means for her wedding plans, she continues on with her daily routine, but that bus is still showing up and the driver says that they are waiting for her.  Knowing something strange is happening now, Melina comes up with a theory of what happened to her and is passing it on to anyone that will listen.  With her mother and Adam not believing the farfetched story that she was killed by the speeding car, they do see that wedding stress is getting the best of their girl and want to help her in any way that they can.

Getting a cup of coffee with Adam, the barista knows Melina by name and claims that she trained her.  Melina denies this with all of her might since she is an English teacher and the girl must be wrong.  Trying to get the coffee cups refilled for her and Adam, Melina is astonished to see that one cup has gone missing and so has her fiancé.  Running home to find him, Melina sees all of her pictures in the house have been changed to just her and her dog, Adam is missing from all of them.  Starting to accept her own theory that she is dead, Melina sees the bus outside of her house and goes to talk to the driver.  Even though he wants her to get on, he is not able to force her to, but when he pulls away Melina is left to see an accident that happened earlier in the evening.

A very mental heavy episode as you are not able to determine what is real and what is not.  Melina knows that her life is great and with everything going her way, she does not have time to die.  But this bus that is haunting her is making her have second thoughts, and when things start changing in her daily life, it becomes apparent that she could be imagining the entire thing.  Staring Ione Skye as Melina, Dylan Walsh as Adam and Art Kitching as the Bus Driver, it is an easy story to get caught up in and wonder what might be really happening in your own life.  There is nothing wrong with making the extra move to try and make things a little bit better, or to make something just flat out happen so you know you are alive.

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