Midnight Express (1978)

Cast

John Hurt
as Max
Randy Quaid
as Jimmy Booth
Alan Parker
as Long-Haired Man at Airport
Brad Davis
as Billy Hayes

Get more information about Midnight Express (1978) on IMDb

Genres & Description

Action Biography Crime Drama Thriller

7.6 / 10

On October 6, 1970 while boarding an international flight out of Istanbul Airport, American Billy Hayes is caught attempting to smuggle 2 kilos of hashish out of the country, the drugs strapped to his body. He is told that he will be released if he cooperates with the authorities in identifying the person who actually sold him the hash. Billy's troubles really begin when after that assistance, he makes a run for it and is recaptured. He is initially sentenced to just over four years for possession, with no time for the more harsh crime of smuggling. The prison environment is inhospitable in every sense, with a sadistic prison guard named Hamidou ruling the prison, he who relishes the mental and physical torture he inflicts on the prisoners for whatever reason. Told to trust no one, Billy does befriend a few of the other inmates, namely fellow American Jimmy Booth (in for stealing two candlesticks from a mosque), a Swede named Erich, and one of the senior prisoners having already ...

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Comments on this trailer
Comments may include spoiler!

emre erdoğan

Propaganda american movie fucked - @Thursday, July 26, 2018 7:18 PM

engin alp

William billy hayes has admitted that in his interview for years later.He exaggerated too much!Fuckin americans they are always innocent and victimized while the rest of the world cruel.Does it that easy to ruin a nations's image? Look at these all the Turkish characters have picked extremely ugly and pure evil on porpuse while american boy is pretty.This is pure black propaganda. - @Monday, April 3, 2017 11:01 AM

Cenk Toplar

"Rifkiiiiiiii" - @Tuesday, November 22, 2016 9:28 PM

Dickn Sägg

propaganda - @Friday, September 16, 2016 4:36 PM

Monte Cristo

Movie released in 1978 and today 2016 Turkey is the same shithole... - @Sunday, July 24, 2016 6:51 PM

lazerbeak2125

-Best-Trailer-EVER - @Wednesday, July 20, 2016 6:37 AM

Ozan Çakmak

movie was good but the story is full of bullshit. even bill hayes admitted it. there's no good turkish character on the movie, not one!. shame on oliver stone. - @Sunday, March 1, 2015 12:26 AM

PYM JBZ

I love Turkish people. They are super nice and kind, but Turkish police is so corrupted and fucked up. - @Saturday, December 20, 2014 11:35 PM

asena önder

idiotizm,stupid , lie, especially about peacock in prison, hahahaaaaaaaa, film for idiots - @Monday, August 11, 2014 5:37 PM

DeadManRising

Great movie! although its a little too exagerated from the book... - @Sunday, June 1, 2014 1:05 PM

Serhat A.

Orientalism express - @Tuesday, May 6, 2014 8:17 PM

SantisandKisin

one of the best on my list - @Tuesday, April 8, 2014 9:40 PM

atıp Tutar

1-This language is not even turkish 2-This story not based on true story (writer of book admire it) Why?All commends made by kürts(are not even citizen ofiically)greeks and armenians - @Monday, November 11, 2013 3:41 AM

Cem Savaş Aydın

This movie is a very realistic representation of Turkey, turkish prisons and turkish judicial system. - @Wednesday, October 30, 2013 10:50 AM

eka mana

i think that movie is based on reality, but it was years ago, besides its jail, where nobody is treated like a human:) whatever, i liked movie, though i couldnt watch torturing moments:) - @Monday, October 21, 2013 4:25 PM

newbytr

youtube.com/watch?v=WMsNPCVbNhw this is truth! - @Sunday, October 20, 2013 4:26 PM

Sharon Trainor

Love this film - @Friday, October 18, 2013 8:11 PM

david copperfield

no I think its better . more open minded ! well at the same time . the world is fucked up at the moment ! ... problems everywhere - @Thursday, October 17, 2013 2:02 PM

RayWilliamJohansen

Interesting. - @Tuesday, October 8, 2013 4:09 AM

Alexandros Vacharidis

No man , drugs are made to hallucinate and show you the world with the perspective of illussion. I want my mind crystal clear as my fellow ancient ancestors said : "Healthy mind in a healthy body" Google it - @Friday, September 20, 2013 8:13 AM

david copperfield

why not ! ? are you scared to go to jail ? you are just a slave ? government has you as a slave . you trust everything they say ! marijuana waws legal just before 300 - 400 years for 2000 years and more . what did we did in the last 400 years to make it illegal ? we fucked everyone with law , poor generation , slaves , sheep and much more . - @Friday, September 13, 2013 5:08 PM

Alexandros Vacharidis

Dont take drugs at all is the point, - @Friday, September 13, 2013 12:54 PM

gaffer91

fucking turks - @Wednesday, September 11, 2013 11:45 PM

Jukka Pehkonen

Great, old movie. - @Sunday, September 8, 2013 7:26 AM

Mo lester

since ive seen that movie , im afraid to go to turkey - @Monday, September 2, 2013 6:24 AM

ellensum

a typical racist american movie. sorry but turkey has nothing to do with this movie. just because most of the turks are muslim, they cannot be emphasized like arabic people. - @Saturday, August 31, 2013 2:26 PM

Frank White

If your kinsmen didn't try to erase turks from northern cyprus, the land would be still united. You started war, turks delivered you war, now stop crying because you couldn't massacre turks. North cyprus belongs to the turks. - @Monday, August 26, 2013 4:00 PM

Frank White

Said the american, ask the world what they think about americans, especially iraqis, whom country your kinsmen invaded because of a fucking lie. Don't bite more off than you can chew, american pig. - @Monday, August 26, 2013 3:58 PM

wee wong

Been to turkey a few times love the place. Good people. .good food..amazing weather . Nuff said :-) - @Sunday, August 25, 2013 7:28 PM

DIAVOLAKII P1926

Turkey has two genocide .scam kill babies. you Learn fucking history - @Saturday, August 24, 2013 6:26 AM

david copperfield

as a turkish : this movie is old lmao ! lol . wtf ! this is old turkey . old theathers / cinema . turkey has changed . much much more better . but dont take drugs in turkey ... they are not open minded like canada or usa . - @Monday, August 19, 2013 3:31 PM

MermanFromRus

I agree with you, there are a lot of naive scenes. I wonder why this movie has rated so high. It showed a complete lack of respect for the whole nation. Furthermore, the main character as a drug smuggler doesn't deserve any sympathy despite his US passport. Even Americans have to obey the law! - @Friday, August 16, 2013 10:28 PM

Frank White

The fuck are you trying to imply? The cypriot greeks started the killings first, just because turks lived there. Learn the fucking history before you run your mouth. - @Saturday, August 10, 2013 3:42 PM

Young Pranksters

Wow Locked Up Abroad copied it from this movie. Is this a true story? - @Friday, August 9, 2013 8:02 PM

Trustypatchees

Just wanna say thanks, this movie is really hard hitting and at first I was outraged. Your points really made me think about it though. :) - @Wednesday, August 7, 2013 10:27 PM

MrLittleRedMan11

It seems you're ignorant to the Cypriot/Turkish war. - @Wednesday, August 7, 2013 3:56 PM

Johann Golan

It would be great if the turkish people in this movie "actually" talked TURKISH ? What o those police officers , indians ? - @Wednesday, July 3, 2013 10:31 PM

Maximiliano Valderrama

I totally agree with you...you are completely right! A lot of cities or countries suffers the consecuences of a lot of movies that only puts fiction about them. (Like Turkey or Colombia) - @Friday, June 28, 2013 5:48 AM

Dylan Vella

This was a great movie. For all of you out there that do not know where is the prison, the road where he escaped etc, its almost all in Malta. - @Sunday, June 23, 2013 9:00 AM

quadflip701

He only sold to his friends. He did not deserve to go through all of that over hashish. It doesn't matter about my opinion of drug smugglers or yours, but nobody should have more respect for justice systems like that than the drug smugglers. Im glad he got out. - @Saturday, May 18, 2013 1:23 AM

binder666

I'm puzzled that a comment I made 9 months ago is still sitting at the top of this page after all this time. Anyways, its standard operating procedure for anyone who is caught smuggling large amounts of drugs to claim, on the advice of his lawyer, that the drugs were for personal use or to be sold only to his "friends." Pretty much every drug smuggler says the same thing. Turkish prisons may not be five star hotels but in many countries Hayes would've been *executed* for what he did. - @Tuesday, May 14, 2013 8:06 AM

AcademicPresentations

A lot of what you say is over exaggerated. First off, he was not a drug dealer. In reality he was a college guy who sold hashish to his friends, that doesn't make him a drug dealer. You can't say that the Turks were not barbaric. Billy Hayes was physically abused by the prison guards mostly because he was a white American. On top of that they wanted him jailed for 30 years. If he was in any other country in Europe, he wouldn't have faced any of that harshness. - @Tuesday, May 14, 2013 2:18 AM

Ruta Gaidyte

Maybe not the true story ,but a fantastic movie - @Wednesday, April 24, 2013 8:18 PM

JulianAguilera001

I was watching Locked up Abraud. They have one on this - @Tuesday, April 16, 2013 2:50 AM

Biff McDermott

Hayes has never claimed he was innocent clu.eless - @Sunday, April 14, 2013 11:23 PM

Biff McDermott

You clearly have nu understanding of the meaning of that disclaimer. Sad. - @Sunday, April 14, 2013 11:21 PM

Biff McDermott

It's a bit of both...based on a true story with its share of peotic license. - @Sunday, April 14, 2013 11:19 PM

Biff McDermott

uh...no. - @Sunday, April 14, 2013 11:17 PM

Biff McDermott

Great flick. - @Sunday, April 14, 2013 11:16 PM

dr. whet farts

tutkish people only eat kebab - @Monday, April 8, 2013 3:42 PM