| Al Pacino | ... | Steve Burns | |
| Paul Sorvino | ... | Capt. Edelson | |
| Karen Allen | ... | Nancy | |
| Richard Cox | ... | Stuart Richards | |
| Don Scardino | ... | Ted Bailey | |
| Joe Spinell | ... | Patrolman DiSimone | |
| Jay Acovone | ... | Skip Lee | |
| Randy Jurgensen | ... | Det. Lefransky | |
| Barton Heyman | ... | Dr. Rifkin | |
| Gene Davis | ... | DaVinci | |
| Arnaldo Santana | ... | Loren Lukas | |
| Larry Atlas | ... | Eric Rossman | |
| Allan Miller | ... | Chief of Detectives | |
| Sonny Grosso | ... | Det. Blasio | |
| Ed O'Neill | ... | Det. Schreiber (as Edward O'Neil) | |
| Michael Aronin | ... | Det. Davis | |
| James Remar | ... | Gregory | |
| William Russ | ... | Paul Gaines | |
| Mike Starr | ... | Patrolman Desher | |
| Steve Inwood | ... | Martino | |
| Keith Prentice | ... | Joey | |
| Leland Starnes | ... | Jack Richards | |
| Robert Pope | ... | DaVinci's Friend | |
| Leo Burmester | ... | Water Sport | |
| Bruce Levine | ... | Dancer | |
| Charles Dunlap | ... | Three Card Monte | |
| Powers Boothe | ... | Hankie Salesman | |
| James Sutorius | ... | Jack (voice) | |
| Richard Jamieson | ... | Spotter | |
| Jimmie Ray Weeks | ... | Seller (as James Ray Weeks) | |
| David Winnie Hayes | ... | Bouncer | |
| Carmine Stippo | ... | Bartender (as Carmine Stipo) | |
| James Hayden | ... | Cockpit Coke Man (scenes deleted) | |
| Todd Winters | ... | Tugboat Mate | |
| Robert Carnegie | |||
| Sylvia Gassel | (as Sylvia Gassell) | ||
| Dennis Shea | |||
| Henry Judd Baker | ... | Tough Cop | |
| Larry Silvestri | |||
| Kevin Johnson | |||
| Lawrence Lust | |||
| Louie Grenier | |||
| Penny Gumeny | |||
| Burr DeBenning | |||
| Ray Vitte | |||
| Mike Barbera | |||
| Joseph Catucci | |||
| Robert Dugan | (as Robert Duggan) | ||
| Dan Sturkie | |||
| Linda Gary | |||
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Kirsten Baker | ... | Jogger (uncredited) | |
| Christian Daugherty | ... | Hustler #2 (uncredited) | |
| Mark Stern | ... | Cockpit Patron (uncredited) | |
| Tieg Thomas | ... | Bartender (uncredited) | |
Directed by | |||
| William Friedkin | |||
Writing credits | ||
| William Friedkin | (written by) | |
| Gerald Walker | (novel) | |
Produced by | |||
| Burtt Harris | .... | associate producer | |
| Jerry Weintraub | .... | producer | |
Original Music by | |||
| Jack Nitzsche | |||
Cinematography by | |||
| James A. Contner | (director of photography) (as James Contner) | ||
Film Editing by | |||
| Bud S. Smith | (as Bud Smith) | ||
| M. Scott Smith | (re-issue) | ||
Casting by | |||
| Louis DiGiaimo | (as Louis Digiaimo) | ||
Production Design by | |||
| Bruce Weintraub | |||
Art Direction by | |||
| Edward Pisoni | |||
Set Decoration by | |||
| Robert Drumheller | |||
Costume Design by | |||
| Robert De Mora | (as Robert deMora) | ||
Makeup Department | |||
| Bob Grimaldi | .... | hair stylist (as Robert Grimaldi) | |
| Robert Norin | .... | special makeup effects artist | |
| Allen Weisinger | .... | makeup artist (as Allan Weisninger) | |
Production Management | |||
| Burtt Harris | .... | production manager | |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | |||
| Alan Hopkins | .... | first assistant director | |
| Robert E. Warren | .... | second assistant director (as Robert Warren) | |
Art Department | |||
| Gene Anderson | .... | assistant property master | |
| Barry Bedig | .... | property master | |
| Stan Graham | .... | scenic artist (as Stanley Graham) | |
| Carlos Quiles Jr. | .... | construction coordinator | |
| Jimmy Raitt | .... | property master (as James Raitt) | |
| Bruno Robotti | .... | scenic artist | |
Sound Department | |||
| Charles L. Campbell | .... | supervising sound editor | |
| Louis L. Edemann | .... | sound editor | |
| Richard C. Franklin | .... | assistant sound editor (as Rick Franklin) | |
| Athan Gigakos | .... | adr mixer: Sound Shop (as Athan Gigiakos) | |
| Robert Glass | .... | sound re-recordist | |
| Chris Jenkins | .... | sound re-recordist (as Christopher Jenkins) | |
| Robert Knudson | .... | sound re-recordist | |
| Kim H. Ornitz | .... | sound mixer (as Kim Ornitz) | |
| David Pettijohn | .... | sound editor (as David A. Pettijohn) | |
| Bruce Richardson | .... | sound editor | |
| Norman B. Schwartz | .... | dialogue editor (as Norman Schwartz) | |
| John A. Amicarella | .... | assistant sound editor (uncredited) | |
| Regina Mullen | .... | adr assistant (uncredited) | |
| John Roesch | .... | foley artist (uncredited) | |
Camera and Electrical Department | |||
| Enrique Bravo | .... | camera operator | |
| Gene Engels | .... | gaffer | |
| Billy Miller | .... | key grip (as William Miller) | |
| Gary Muller | .... | assistant camera | |
| Hank Muller | .... | assistant camera (as Hank Muller Jr.) | |
| Josh Weiner | .... | still photographer | |
| Scott Rathner | .... | additional second assistant camera (uncredited) | |
Costume and Wardrobe Department | |||
| Michael Dennison | .... | wardrobe supervisor | |
| Robert Dean Jackson | .... | wardrobe supervisor (as Dean Jackson) | |
Editorial Department | |||
| Donah Bassett | .... | negative cutter | |
| Jere Huggins | .... | assistant film editor | |
| Ned Humphreys | .... | assistant film editor | |
| Larry Rovetti | .... | color timer | |
Music Department | |||
| The Cripples | .... | music performer | |
| Willy DeVille | .... | music performer | |
| Bill Evans | .... | music engineer | |
| The Germs | .... | music performer (as Germs - G.I.) | |
| Egberto Gismonti | .... | music performer | |
| John Hiatt | .... | music performer | |
| Mutiny | .... | music performer | |
| Rough Trade | .... | music performer | |
| Madelynn von Ritz | .... | music performer (as Madelynn Von Ritz) | |
Other crew | |||
| George Davis | .... | secretary to producer | |
| Carmine Foresta | .... | location manager | |
| Sidney Gecker | .... | script supervisor | |
| Sonny Grosso | .... | technical advisor | |
| Edward Iacobelli | .... | teamster captain | |
| Mark Johnson | .... | production executive | |
| Randy Jurgensen | .... | technical advisor | |
| Toni St. Clair Lilly | .... | secretary to the director | |
| Jennifer Ogden | .... | production office coordinator | |
| Lucille Smith | .... | auditor (as Lucille Cannon) | |
| Michael Weintraub | .... | production assistant | |
| Darryl Peck | .... | production assistant (uncredited) | |
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| Ex Drummer | Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom | A Serbian Film | Irreversible | Ichi the Killer |
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| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Crime section | IMDb USA section |
William Friedkin is a mysterious, often mystifying film-maker. Although he rose to prominence at the same time as the rest of the so-called 'movie brat' generation of directors (Coppola, Spielberg, Scorsese, DePalma, et al.), he stands apart, even from a group as essentially disparate as this one. For one thing, his films lack the intertextual references and cinematic stylisation common to most of the other members. If he has an over-riding aesthetic, it would be the ugliness of the majority of human existence. He's not interested in prettifying his images or indulging in style-for-style's sake; which is not to say that his film's don't exhibit inventive and effective technique, just that this technique is always at the service of the story he's telling, and is often blunt and brutally effective in it's employment. All of this no doubt arises from his start in documentary film-making. Friedkin is particularly good at depicting the menace of urban environments, and the locales of a lot of his films are frightening, tangibly real places. Witness the sequences involving Karras' aged mother in 'The Exorcist', which for me are the most disturbing scenes in an often terrifying film. As we observe the elderly lady living alone in her shabby apartment in a crime-ridden neighbourhood, we realise that this is the existence that many millions of people are forced to endure, and it's oppressiveness adds immeasurably to the psychological impact of the film as a whole. We share Karras' fear and traumatising guilt that she died alone in such circumstances, and the special effects trickery of the climax is lent a genuine resonance.
Because of the stark, seemingly 'artless' force and apparent misanthropy of much of his work, a number of otherwise perceptive commentators dislike Friedkin intensely. Pauline Kael was extremely cool about 'The French Connection' and absolutely hated 'The Exorcist'. David Thompson described him as "essentially incompetent", bludgeoning the audience with blatant and obvious effects. In fact, Friedkin's best work is highly sophisticated in it's use of sound and music, and employs often visceral imagery to telling and subversive effect. However, some of his films ARE genuinely bloody awful, or at least depressingly mediocre. The very inconsistency of his work lies at the centre of the mystery that is his career. He seems to me to be a fiercely intelligent man whose art is driven by his life rather than the culture of film, and whose reportedly quixotic, often self-destructive personality in no small measure accounts for the expansive peaks and troughs of his cinematic achievements.
Friedkin has reassuring or comforting his audience way down the list of his priorities. In the case of 'Cruising', he neglected to add them at all. Because of this, 'Cruising' is a very difficult film to watch. Most film-makers, were they making a film set in such an alien and frightening environment, would go overboard on providing us with at least one protagonist we could identify with. But Friedkin takes the very opposite route and presents us entirely with characters who are abhorrent, sleazy or totally ambiguous. Indeed, ambiguity is the film's raison d'etre - we are never sure of anything, and this becomes both the pictures great strength and source of much audience frustration. It seems that unlike, say, Spielberg, who continually seeks the approbation of his audience, Friedkin actively resents his (or rather, their preconceptions and certainties), leading him to consistently challenge and upset them. This can be exciting to those who value such seditious manouveres, but dispiriting and destabilising for those that don't.
The major problem with evaluating 'Cruising' is that the film as it currently exists is seriously incomplete (apparently having been shorn of some 40 minutes of footage by the censors!). I suspect that a 'directors cut' should it ever emerge, although no doubt clarifying certain issues, would overall fail to dispel the central ambiguity that is so infuriating and troubling to the majority of the audience, and that lies at the heart of Friedkins vision. "What interests me is the very thin line between good and evil", the director once said when asked to provide a thematic overview of his work - and this is the core of 'Cruising'.
I would urge you to watch the film. It is a uniquely dark, brave piece somewhat compromised by well documented production difficulties and the censors scissors. It has a sinister, compelling momentum and wonderfully ugly, grainy textures that seep into your pores leaving you uncomfortable and unsettled. Sometimes a feel-bad movie can be as bracing as a winter morning. 'Cruising' is such an experience, and a fascinating, provocative one at that.