'Interior Leather Bar' Review Roundup: James Franco's Latest is Controversial

The new James Franco movie "Interior Leather Bar" has opened in theaters and is scoring mixed reviews.

The movie, which opened at the Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals, re-imagines the lost 40 minutes from William Friedkin's "Cruising" as a starting point to a broader exploration of sexual and creative freedom.

The film was part of a controversy when it opened because of it explicit content, and premiered all around the world in various festivals to a mixed reception. Peter Debruge from Variety was among the critics who disliked the movie. He said, "A partly authentic, partly scripted behind-the-scenes featurette that never quite conveys the star's 'high/curious' interest in all things taboo."

Calum Marsh from the Village Voice also disliked the film and wrote, "A particularly risible nothing whose premise alone betrays the paucity of Franco's imagination and wit."

Alonso Duralde from the Wrap, however, gave the movie a good review and wrote, "Uses the notorious Friedkin movie as a starting point for a discussion about identity, perception, an actor's mask and the fear and power of on-screen sexuality."

Sheri Linden from the Los Angeles Times also liked the film and said, "A cheerfully unsettling exploration of mainstream representations of male homosexuality."

John DeFore from the Hollywood Reporter noted that movie is made for a specific demographic. He wrote, "The hourlong experiment is mainly for queer-theory students and Francomaniacs."

"Interior Leather Bar" was co-directed by Travis Matthews and stars Val Lauren ("Sal"). The film is being released by Stranding Releasing; it is unrated.