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Bookmark this pageCruising (1980)
Director: William Friedkin
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Starting from a classic undercover premise (Pacino descends into Manhattan's SM gay underworld to track a psychopathic killer), and opening with some powerful moments, Cruising soon drifts into bloody Village People-type caricature, with Pacino overplaying his nameless angst as the script patently refuses to tackle the central issue - its hero's sexual ambivalence. The structure continues to loosen, and although Friedkin - like Coppola - has always had difficulty with endings, this one is so arbitrary it's as if he just gave up.Author: DP
User reviews of this film
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- godfrey hamilton said...
- Posted on Aug 22 2010 00:57 I assume the 'DP' credited above is erstwhile TO critic David Pirie, whose A Heritage of Horror was and still is an indispensable overview of UK's horror tradition(s) - not true alas of the 'updated' version, so full of mistakes and typos it's unreadable. But I digress. 'DP' got it wrong with this movie, as the frequent re-evaluations attest. It really is a cracker of a film, anchored by Pacino's fearless, bravura performance, and although the movie's exploration of gender anxiety and urban identity cried out for Cammell & Roeg, it still works as a smashing neo-noir urban gothic horror story. And it isn't a 'gay' movie (whatever that may mean) as much as a fetish movie. Whatever THAT may mean. It certainly rewards another viewing. Or two.
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Cast & crew
Director: William Friedkin
Producer: Jerry Weintraub
Cast: Al Pacino, Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen, Richard Cox, Don Scardino, Joe Spinell full cast
Genre(s): Thrillers
Duration: 106 mins
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