20 BDSM Movies More Provocative Than Fifty Shades Of Grey

12. Cruising

William Friedkin's Cruising might not exactly be a ringing endorsement of either the gay community or the fetish scene but as a film in its own right it serves up a solid psychological thriller which touches on some sensitive issues. Al Pacino plays a police officer sent undercover into the world of S&M gay clubs to track down a serial killer. Critics and gay rights activists alike slammed Cruising at the time of its release - for different reasons - but in the years since a reappraisal has seen this thriller garner a steady cult following. While no masterpiece, Cruising isn't the homophobic movie some suggested at the time of its release, even if it falls short of providing a nuanced depiction of the gay scene in which it is set.