Cruising appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. Taken from a new 4K scan, this turned into a solid Dolby Vision presentation.
Overall sharpness worked well. Some softness crept into a few darker interiors, but the majority of the movie offered appealing accuracy.
No issues with jagged edges or moire effects materialized, and I saw no edge haloes. Grain felt natural and the film lacked print flaws.
The palette went with a semi-desaturated sense of natural, albeit with some blue in night sequences. The 4K represented the colors well, with a modest boost from HDR.
Blacks showed nice density, and shadows were clean. HDR added punch to whites and contrast. Expect a strong presentation that fell just under "A-" standards.
As for the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 remix, it came with its own ups and downs. In particular, the soundscape seemed unbalanced, mainly because music mainly came from the rear speakers.
If Arrow reveals that this aspect of the track got reversed, I’ll not feel surprised. Music did emanate from the front, but the surrounds overwhelmed in an unnatural manner.
Otherwise, the soundfield seemed virtually monaural. A smattering of effects broadened to the sides in a minor manner, but don’t expect much.
I also failed to detect anything much in the back channels beyond the music. Perhaps light effects cropped up back there but the music simply obscured them. In any case, the overall result provided a soundtrack that stayed heavily centered except for the unbalanced score.
Audio quality had issues as well, mainly related to speech. The film came with some weak looping, and those lines tended to seem stiff and unnatural.
Dialogue varied, though, so plenty of the material felt reasonably natural as well. Most of the iffy dubbing seemed to occur in the movie's first half, so expect that element to improve with time.
Despite the weird focus of the music in the back channels, the score and songs showed decent clarity and life. Effects remained lackluster, as they failed to demonstrate much range or punch. Mainly due to the unbalanced soundfield, this wound up as a mediocre track.
Note that the 4K UHD also featured the film’s original DTS-HD MA monaural mix, one that I felt better represented the source. Because it eliminated the surrounds, it lacked the 5.1 version’s awkward placement of music and thus seemed more natural.
Quality seemed about the same for both mono and 5.1 tracks, as the flaws such as the poor looping came from the source. Still, the mono mix fared better because it didn't suffer from the distracting soundscape. The mono version represented the film the way a movie from 1980 should sound.
Note that my audio grade listed earlier reflected this mono mix. The 5.1 track earned a "C".
How did the 4K UHD compare to the 2019 Blu-ray version? Both sported identical 5.1 tracks, but the UHD included the movie's original mono mix, something the BD lacked, and as mentioned, it fared better than the spotty multichannel remix.
The Dolby Vision UHD came from a new 4K scan, and it showed, as the 2025 release easily topped the iffy 2019 BD. For one, the UHD went back to the movie's original color scheme, whereas the BD came with a "modern" tint that too heavily favored blues and greens.
In addition to the improved colors, sharpness and blacks showed growth, and the UHD lost the noise reduction, edge haloes and other anomalies from the BD. The 4K offered a massive visual upgrade over the problematic BD.
The 4K includes the BD's extras along with plenty more, and we get three audio commentaries. The first comes from director William Friedkin, as he provides a running, screen-specific discussion that covers inspirations and influences, locations, cast, issues with the gay community, realism and research.
While Friedkin occasionally touches on those subjects, most of the time he simply narrates the movie. Hoo boy, Friedkin sure does like to discuss what we see on the screen!
You might wonder if you accidentally triggered a DVS track instead of a commentary. Though Friedkin presents a little interpretation of the film and the occasional useful comment, the vast majority of this piece bores.
First heard on the 2019 Blu-ray, the second commentary features Friedkin and film critic Mark Kermode. Both sit together for a running, screen-specific view of the project’s roots and development, story/characters, censorship and controversies, cast and performances, sets and locations, music, and connected domains.
After the boredom of Friedkin’s solo track, I feared this one would become a snoozefest as well. Happily, it proves radically more satisfying.
Kermode works well as an interviewer/moderator, and he ensures that the discussion moves smoothly. Friedkin proves frank and informative as he doesn’t shy away from criticisms, such as his comments on Al Pacino’s lack of preparation. Ignore the awful Friedkin solo track and play this one instead.
New to the 4K, we get a track that involves Germs member Don Bolles, Mink Deville members Kenny Margolis and Louis X. Erlanger, Rough Trade member Carole Pope, singer Madelynn Von Ritz, Cripples member Shawn Casey O'Brien and filmmaker Jonathan Hertzberg. This delivers an audio essay taken from separate interviews and never becomes screen-specific.
The various musicians discuss their careers as well as the songs they recorded for the Cruising soundtrack, while Hertzberg summarizes a few related domains at the very end. The quality of the information can seem scattershot, but this mostly turns into a compelling view of the movie's tunes.
Also exclusive to the 4K, we find an Alternate Score. Referred to as "Heavy Leather", it comes via DTS-HD MA stereo audio and offers a pulsing synth-pop take on the music. Note that if you select this option, you get an isolated score, so the music doesn't integrate with speech and effects.
After this we get two featurettes: The History of Cruising (21:05) and Exorcising Cruising (22:31). Across these, we hear from Friedkin, actor/technical advisors Sonny Grosso and Randy Jurgensen, producer Jerry Weintraub, casting director Lou DiGiaimo, director of photography James Contner, production executive Mark Johnson, editor Bud Smith, and actors Richard Cox, Don Scardino, Gene Davis, Jay Acovone, and James Remar.
“History” looks at the adaptation of the novel and changes made for the script, research and influences, locations and realism. From there we learn about casting, characters, and performances, and Friedkin’s influence on the set.
“Exorcising” views cinematography, working within the gay community and connected issues, the film’s violence and topics related to the murders, editing, audio and music, and the movie’s reception.
The featurettes give us a pretty solid examination of the production and doesn’t skimp on frank details. I especially like all the attention devoted to the negative reactions from the gay community, as those make up an important part of the movie’s legacy.
Of course, it’s too bad that Al Pacino doesn’t participate, but his absence doesn’t mar this piece too much. The featurettes cover the flick in an informative and involving manner.
Under The Backroom, we get cut footage. This includes two "Deleted Scenes" (4:31), "Porno Booth Scene" with additional footage (2:40), and four clips of "On-Set Audio" (4:11). "On-Set Audio" also provides an interview with on-set sound mixer Kim Ornitz that runs 10 minutes, 38 seconds.
In the "Deleted Scenes", "Why Take the Job?" offers a little unneeded exposition, while "Night Stick" gives us a superfluous sequence with Patrolmen DiSimone and Desher. The extended "Porno Booth Scene" also feels tedious.
Famously, members of the gay community protested Cruising due to their perception the movie would depict them in a poor and erroneous light. The most interesting of the "On-Set Audio" clips lets us hear some of these protests in the background.
The remaining "Audio" snippets seem much less interesting. As for Ornitz, he offers some notes about his experiences on the shoot and gives us a nice overview.
The "Alternate Elements" section brings more material. We get a "French Disclaimer Card" (0:59), a "French Credit Roll" (4:02), a "Spanish Disclaimer Card" (0:37), and "Alternate English End Credits" (1:09), all of which seem self-explanatory.
"Alternate Introduction - Comparison" (1:13) shows the ways the theatrical, 2006 restoration and 2018 restoration versions of the film open, with all three seen onscreen ar the same time. We can also see these parts of the 2006 and 2018 presentations on their own. The "restorations" seem noteworthy partly because the come with color timing that leans much more blue than the theatrical version.
"Backroom" ends with two examples of "Censored Material". We get "Reel 02a" (1:38) and "Reel 3" (1:55).
Like the "Alternate Introductions", these can be viewed solo as in comparison between the censored and uncensored final versions. This section presents a good look at the changes.
We also find two trailers, four TV spots, five TV test spots and TV spot optical tests (2:35). If you click to the right of "TV Test Spots", a rooster icon appears. Click on it to see an additional ad.
The 4K disc ends with five Image Galleries: "Promotional Items" (207 screens across 16 countries), "Key Art" (3), "Musical Releases" (8), "Jane Wechsler On-set Sketch Gallery" (9) and "Set Items Gallery" (6). All offer good material.
On a separate Blu-ray disc, we find a slew of additional extras that mix archival and new elements. Shot in 2024, I Want to Be the Curator goes for 38 minutes, 29 seconds and features actor Karen Allen.
She discusses how she came to Cruising as well as the movie's controversies, working with Friedkin and actor Al Pacino, some memories of the shoot, and her reactions to the film. Allen offers a charming chat with a good array of notes.
Walking the Line goes for one hour, 11 minutes, 13 seconds. Here we locate an interview with actor/police advisor Randy Jurgensen.
With "Line", we learn about Jurgensen's participation in the movie's development as well as his police experiences and their influence on the film. Jurgensen mixes Cruising-related details with fascinating stories of his police work in this informative reel.
Next comes Cut Offs. During this 55-minute piece, we find info from editor Bud S. Smith.
Unsurprisingly, Smith discusses his work on Cruising as well as his efforts alongside Friedkin for other flicks. Smith digs deep into various challenges, especially when he talks about the movie's graphic content and the changes made to satisfy the MPAA.
Who's That Guy? fills 13 minutes, 42 and involves acyor Jay Acovone as he relates his experiences on Cruising. Acovone delivers a brief but vivid and engaging collection of memories.
After this, we move to Pounding the Beat. In this 46-minute, 57-second piece, we hear from actor Mike Starr.
"Beat" examines Starr's experiences during the shoot as well as other aspects of his career. Starr presents a lively presence and gives us some good notes.
The Boy on the Bus spans 37 minutes, 30 seconds. Here we find info from actor Mark Zecca.
In this reel, Zecca chats about his experiences as a young man in the late 1970s NYC gay community along with memories of his time on Cruising and other aspects of his career. Zecca brings useful material, especially via his first-hand thoughts about the culture depicted in the movie.
From 1990, Mineshaft Memories lasts 33 minutes, 41 seconds and brings comments from Wally Wallace, the former manager of a club that acted as an influence in Cruising. As he covers the facts, Wallace provides an educational view of the reality behind some of the movie's fiction.
Shot in 2022, BeyondFest Q&A runs 41 minutes, 10 seconds and brings a session with director William Friedkin. He talks about Cruising as well as other aspects of his career. I can't claim we get lots of insights, but this turns into an enjoyable conversation with the legendary director not long before his death.
A visual essay entitled Breaking the Codes follows. It fills 13 minutes, two seconds and offers remarks from actor/writer/producer David MacGillivray.
"Breaking" examines the various "codes" that gays have used to communicate in secret over the years. MacGillivray brings us a useful summary.
A short film called Stop the Movie occupies 11 minutes, 51 seconds and it depicts the protests over Cruising in 1979. We can watch the silent Stop with or without commentary from filmmaker Jim Hubbard.
Shot by Hubbard, Stop consists of footage from those 1979 demonstrations against the film. Because the reel lacks any narration or explanation, it doesn't make mch sense on its own. It works much better when viewed with Hubbard's commentary.
Disc Two concludes with 116 Production Stills that mainly shows shots from the movie. That makes them a bit tedious.
I don’t mind the fact that Cruising focuses on the seedy side of gay culture. I do object to the sheer boredom it inflicts on the viewer. Flat, dull and tedious, the movie acts more as a tour of gay nightclubs than as an actual story.
The 4K UHD comes with strong picture and appropriate audio as well as an extensive collection of supplements. I don’t think much of the movie, but this release presents the film as well as I can imagine.
To rate this film, visit the original review of CRUISING
