Cruising - 1980

Plot: A serial killer is wrecking havoc on the Manhattan Gay "Leather Scene". Al Pacino goes undercover to catch the murderer.

Starring Al Pacino and directed by Academy award winner William Friedkin, Cruising was panned by the critics and did modest business in 1980. Nominated for a "Razzi" it lost out to Can't Stop the Music. Today its seems fairly popular (over 27,000 IMDB Votes) but poorly rated (IMDB Rating 6.5).

Pluses: Acting. Karen Allen, Paul Sorvino, and Pacino are all exellent in their parts.  Also, there are a few good action scenes and some realistic* (if stomach turning) gore.

Minus: The screenplay and story are terrible. Repetitive, sluggish, and unengaging. No memorable dialogue. Supporting characters are forgettable. Take out the Gay angle and its a TV-movie of week. Or an episode of NYPD Blue.

All the characters are boring, even the serial killer**. The atmosphere is unappealing with constant shots of a "shocking " Gay club, full of unattractive men in leather and odd outfits. No one in the movie is likable, except Karen Allen.

Summary: This mediocre movie should be forgotten. Only watched today due the famous people involved and cultural politics.

* =  The realism doesn't apply to the skin color of the actors.  This is Woody Allen Manhattan where 95 percent of the people are white. 
** = Absurdly, despite taking place in NYC, the killer is a WASP college student from St. Louis!