Movies Like Cruising (1980)

Cruising is a 1980 crime, mystery, thriller film from William Friedkin with a MovieMagicScore of 6.6/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with On the Other Hand, Death: A Donald Strachey Mystery and A Stranger Among Us.

Crime Mystery Thriller

On the Other Hand, Death: A Donald Strachey Mystery

2008

When the residents of a neighborhood are offered huge sums of money to sell their homes to a developer, the only ones to refuse are an elderly lesbian couple. Soon after, the couple's home is besieged by anti-gay vandalism, but Don suspects that the attack is motivated by big-business rather than homophobia.

5.4

MagicScore

A Stranger Among Us

1992

Detective Emily Eden is a tough New York City cop forced to go undercover to solve a puzzling murder. Her search for the truth takes her into a secret world of unwritten law and unspoken power, a world where the only way out is deeper in.

5.5

MagicScore

8MM

1999

A small, seemingly innocuous plastic reel of film leads surveillance specialist Tom Welles down an increasingly dark and frightening path. With the help of the streetwise Max, he relentlessly follows a bizarre trail of evidence to determine the fate of a complete stranger. As his work turns into obsession, he drifts farther and farther away from his wife, family and simple life as a small-town PI.

6.5

MagicScore

Stranger by the Lake

2013

Frank spends his summer days hopelessly searching for companionship at a popular cruising spot on the shores of a lake in rural France. One day, he meets Michel, an attractive yet darkly mysterious man and falls blindly in love.

6.3

MagicScore

Strange Darling

2024

Nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree.

6.9

MagicScore

Horsemen

2009

A recently widowed detective still grieving over his wife's death discovers a shocking connection between himself and the suspects in a serial killing spree linked to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

5.9

MagicScore

15 Minutes

2001

When Eastern European criminals Oleg and Emil come to New York City to pick up their share of a heist score, Oleg steals a video camera and starts filming their activities, both legal and illegal. When they learn how the American media circus can make a remorseless killer look like the victim and make them rich, they target media-savvy NYPD Homicide Detective Eddie Flemming and media-naive FDNY Fire Marshal Jordy Warsaw, the cops investigating their murder and torching of their former criminal partner, filming everything to sell to the local tabloid TV show "Top Story."

5.9

MagicScore

Malignant

2021

Madison is paralyzed by shocking visions of grisly murders, and her torment worsens as she discovers that these waking dreams are in fact terrifying realities with a mysterious tie to her past.

6.8

MagicScore

Die Hard: With a Vengeance

1995

New York detective John McClane is back and kicking bad-guy butt in the third installment of this action-packed series, which finds him teaming with civilian Zeus Carver to prevent the loss of innocent lives. McClane thought he'd seen it all, until a genius named Simon engages McClane, his new "partner" -- and his beloved city -- in a deadly game that demands their concentration.

7.3

MagicScore

#10

Best Seller

1987

Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.

5.9

MagicScore

#11

Secretary

2002

A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.

6.8

MagicScore

#12

No Way to Treat a Lady

1968

Christopher Gill is a psychotic killer who uses various disguises to trick and strangle his victims. Moe Brummel is a single and harassed New York City police detective who starts to get phone calls from the strangler and builds a strange alliance as a result. Kate Palmer is a swinging, hip tour guide who witnesses the strangler leaving her dead neighbor's apartment and sets her sights on the detective. Moe's live-in mother wishes her son would be a successful Jewish doctor like his big brother.

6.6

MagicScore

#13

Preaching to the Perverted

1997

A computer wizard infiltrates a London sex club to get evidence for a shutdown, but falls for the proprietress.

5.9

MagicScore

#14

I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry

2007

Firefighters Chuck Ford and Larry Valentine are guy's guys, loyal to the core—which is why when widower Larry asks Chuck to pose as his lover so that he can get domestic partner benefits for his kids, his buddy agrees. However, things get dicey when a bureaucrat comes calling, and the boys are forced to present a picture of domestic bliss.

6.1

MagicScore

#15

Killing Words

2004

A mild-mannered psychopath plays mind-games with a woman he has tied to a chair in his basement.

6.5

MagicScore

#16

Sea of Love

1989

Seen-it-all New York detective Frank Keller is unsettled - he has done twenty years on the force and could retire, and he hasn't come to terms with his wife leaving him for a colleague. Joining up with an officer from another part of town to investigate a series of murders linked by the lonely hearts columns he finds he is getting seriously and possibly dangerously involved with Helen, one of the main suspects.

6.6

MagicScore

#17

The Heat

2013

Uptight and straight-laced, FBI Special Agent Sarah Ashburn is a methodical investigator with a reputation for excellence--and hyper-arrogance. Shannon Mullins, one of Boston P.D.'s "finest," is foul-mouthed and has a very short fuse, and uses her gut instinct and street smarts to catch the most elusive criminals. Neither has ever had a partner, or a friend for that matter. When these two wildly incompatible law officers join forces to bring down a ruthless drug lord, they become the last thing anyone expected: buddies.

6.6

MagicScore

#18

Psycho

1960

When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.

8.4

MagicScore

#19

Cop Land

1997

Freddy Heflin is the sheriff of a place everyone calls “Cop Land” — a small and seemingly peaceful town populated by the big city police officers he’s long admired. Yet something ugly is taking place behind the town’s peaceful facade. And when Freddy uncovers a massive, deadly conspiracy among these local residents, he is forced to take action and make a dangerous choice between protecting his idols and upholding the law.

6.8

MagicScore

#20

The Long Goodbye

1973

In 1970s Hollywood, Detective Philip Marlowe tries to help a friend who is accused of murdering his wife.

7.4

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Cruising?

The top films similar to Cruising by MovieMagicScore are On the Other Hand, Death: A Donald Strachey Mystery (5.4), A Stranger Among Us (5.5), 8MM (6.5). Each shares crime/mystery/thriller themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Cruising worth watching?

Cruising holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.6/10 from 589 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Cruising?

Cruising (1980) is a crime, mystery, thriller film directed by William Friedkin, starring Al Pacino, Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen.

Where can I find more recommendations like Cruising?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more crime recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like On the Other Hand, Death: A Donald Strachey Mystery Movies like A Stranger Among Us Movies like 8MM Movies like Stranger by the Lake Movies like Strange Darling Movies like Horsemen

About movies like Cruising

This ranked list pairs Cruising (1980), a crime and mystery and thriller film from William Friedkin, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Al Pacino take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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