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Fred Schruers

Fred Schruers

Reasons To Be Cheerful:

Reasons To Be Cheerful:

Revisiting “The Beach”, with friends Well--what do you lot think you’re up to? Actually, about an hour from the moment this shot was taken, we were going to have a scare. Nothing too deadly. But nerve-wracking enough. Call it a learning experience. The picture was taken mid-summer of 1986,

Alex Garland's Cinema of Entrapment and Escape

Alex Garland's Cinema of Entrapment and Escape

The British director has shown Americans in circumstances that make scenes of horror personal; herewith, a look at his strategies. Recently in this space I discussed (“Civil War" Is here—and we’re living it”) Alex Garland’s recent film about an America wrenched into anarchy and discord. It’

"Civil War" is here. And we're living it

"Civil War" is here. And we're living it

With the weekend coming up, you may be wondering where to find the best filmed brawls… Kind readers, may one ask if you plan to watch any campus brawls this weekend? I’m only half-kidding. As an option, you might find a theater to watch a much more ramped-up presentation,

Stunts, Man-"The Fall Guy"'s Got `Em

Stunts, Man-"The Fall Guy"'s Got `Em

Ryan Gosling (and Emily Blunt) keep it super profesh in “The Fall Guy”. It’s not supposed to be deep. Does anybody remember the 1980 film “The Stunt Man”? It was little-seen, though It won Peter O’Toole an Oscar nomination and also got a nom for Richard Rush as

A Time of Retribution

A Time of Retribution

O.J. Simpson could have left a robust and positive legacy as one of America’s legendary sports heroes. And there’s no American hero like a sports hero. When he died this month of cancer, his painful story came to the most cheerless of endings. My experience of O.

"Ripley"'s Grain

"Ripley"'s Grain

If ever a show was a great fit for the West Side of L.A.—and I say this as a fellow denizen—it’s Steve Zaillian’s adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith crime classic, “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” re-billed "Ripley". It probably isn’t a good idea,

Man What Are You Doing Here?

Man What Are You Doing Here?

The problem with yielding our entertainment choices to faceless corporations is there’s no face to slap when it all goes wrong. What had been intended as a heavy-rotation, hyped-to-the-point-of-aggravation event was all but undone near the end of Sunday night's two-hour presentation of Billy Joel’s 100thconcert