Midnight Express
by Alan Parker
List Price:
Our Price: $1.49
You Save: $11.49 (89%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: VHS Video
See more movie releases
Buy this VHS video movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Product details
Actor: Bo Hopkins, Brad Davis, Irene Miracle, Paolo Bonacelli, Paul L. SmithDirector: Alan Parker
Cinematographer: Michael Seresin
Producer: Alan Marshall
Producer: David Puttnam
Producer: Peter Guber
Writer: Billy Hayes
Writer: Oliver Stone
Writer: William Hoffer
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog; French (Original Language); Maltese (Original Language)
Format: Color, NTSC
Running Time: 121 minutes
Release Date: 1998-06-02
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Publisher: Sony Pictures
Studio: Sony Pictures
VHS Movie Reviews of Midnight Express
Movie Review: Midnight Express
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a fantastic movie. I remember seeing it when it came out in the 70's and it is every bit as good now as it was then. A true story and a very upsetting one until finally Billy Hayes gets out of this turkish prison. He gets caught smuggling drugs and the story from that moment on is unbelievable, intense. A well done movie to put you into the setting and feel for how horrible it was to be stuck in a foreign country without the help of your home country being able to help. A good one even if you have already seen it. Enjoy!!Movie Review: Just to get this off my chest.
Summary: 4 Stars
I apologize in advance this isn't really a review of the movie. I just can't believe how frequently older reviews say alarming things, and I had to speak up. Things like:
- the "spoiled" guy got what he deserved
- that may have been the way things were in the Turkish penal system of the '70s, but we must abide by their ways; "when in Rome" as it were
- jokes about the abuse
These types of comments weren't rare, and I found it disturbing. With so many people out there possessing that attitude, no wonder human rights abuses are allowed to go on in our world. And will continue until everyone takes the issue seriously and never makes excuses for it.
Also whether or not the story is completely accurate or not, I'm amazed by all the reviewers who declared the whole thing was a complete lie, because "I've been to Turkey and people weren't like that." I've yet to read a review by someone who said, "I served time in a Turkish prison and it was not like that at all." No, these reviewers are people who simply don't like what they they are seeing/hearing, therefore they unequivocally pronounce that everything in the story was a racist fabrication. Really? Do you know that for sure???
Movie Review: Overly sensational but well-made prison film
Summary: 3 Stars
Based on the true story of would-be drug smuggler Willaim Hayes, screenwriter Oliver Stone goes way over the top here with courtroom theatrics, sensational violence, and an overt chauvanism towards Turks in this portrayal of the Turkish prison system as a kind of hell on earth. On the plus side: great locations (Instanbul and Malta), beautiful photography, and good acting, help create a sense of atmosphere.
Movie Review: Truth is the first victim of war, and Stone is at war...
Summary: 1 Stars
Stone won't make himself vulnerable to anyone or the facts, whether that means eliminating all JFK conspiracy theories other than his own or simplifying a story and people as he has done here in Midnight Express. Stone borrowed Billy Hayes' real story of being held in a Turkish prison for several years after being caught smuggling hashish, and hijacked it to devastating effect. [I focus on screenwriter Stone instead of director Parker because the substance of Hayes' original book was altered by Stone and Parker just created Stone's skewed vision]. Stone was successful in destroying the Turkish justice image in the minds of generations of Americans. Ask most any American [now thirty years after Stone made his movie] to picture a Turkish(or Islamic) prison or court room or justice system, and the one portrayed in Midnight Express is the one that is ingrained. Coincidence or not, it should be noted that this humiliating portrayal of Islamic justice came at a time of increased Hollywood output of negative Islamic images and favorable Israeli ones(the unprecedented and universally viewed miniseries Masada). To this day, Islam's portrayal in movies is considered horrendous by those who study it(Shaheen's 'Reel Bad Arabs').
Instead of having ANY sympathetic Muslim/Turkish characters, they ALL are beasts. It turns out the real Billy Hayes actually made friends with several Turkish inmates but accepting Stone's reality means accepting this truth as a lie. Constantly the Western inmates have more depth,..they play instruments, they sing, they constantly visibly show compassion that the Muslims lack, they even articulate in a courtroom why Western justice culture is superior to Islamic sense of justice. The Muslims in the film are stoic, opportunistic, hypocritical, and, well,..evil. They are portrayed as victims of their own culture, as the judge hangs his head down when Billy is castigating Islamic justice for its lack of mercy, and the judge seems sad when he replies that his hands are tied. There is no reaction or inquisitiveness in the faces of the Turkish prosecutor or the others - the viewer sees them as programmed by their culture. Just so the viewer isn't confused as to the root of what creates such a fiasco of justice, Stone purposefully puts Islamic prayer beads in the hands of reprehensible characters like the Turkish public defender, and makes sure that a mosque is the prominent structure occupying the frame as Billy is driven around the city by policemen. Likewise, he hangs Christian symbols on the victims in the film. The warden never attempted to rape Hayes, as the film depicts, nor did Hayes murder anyone. The raping warden, with his piggish obese kids, is a metaphor for the appetite and stern lack of fidelity/tolerance that Stone seems to want to broadcast about Islam to the viewer. Stone's manufactured murder of the raping warden may have been an effort to implant the idea that the resolution the [mostly Christian] viewers should expect between their culture and the grotesque monster of Islam will take the form of a violent showdown. The viewer can't help but feel relief at the death of the warden, and then carries away from the movie farmer Stone's seed of predjudice against Islam.
The differences between the book and the film is evidence that Stone possibly used the powerful vehicle of a "true story" to instigate prejudice against Turks/Muslims. Billy Hayes, now 56 years old and living in LA, recently tried[in the Seattle Post] to correct Stone's portrayal of his book: "The message of 'Midnight Express' isn't 'Don't go to Turkey', it's 'Don't be an idiot like I was, and try to smuggle drugs." and, "I loved the movie, but I wish they'd shown some good Turks. You don't see a single one in the movie, and there were a lot of them, even in the prison. It created this impression that all Turks are like the people in 'Midnight Express.'"
Movie Review: Clash of Freedoms
Summary: 5 Stars
"Midnight Express" is a true story of a 20 year old American Billy Hayes, who tried to smuggle two kilograms of hashish out of Turkey. Billy got searched at the Istanbul Airport, and the Turkish police arrested Billy. In return for cooperation the police offered leniency, which Billy accepted. Unfortunately, Billy tried to escape while cooperating with local authorities. Billy now has to face the wrath of the Turkish justice system, which mainly wants to make an example out of foreigners, especially Americans used to getting away with Billy's behavior back in the States.
"Midnight Express" was an instant classic as soon as it was released in 1978. Little was known about Muslim countries and levels of freedom, if any. This film showed just the amount of freedom people in a westernized Muslim country received. Istanbul is both in Europe and Asia, a large, cosmopolitan city, so it's that more of a shock to encounter a prison like the one Billy ended in in this beautiful city.
Thirty years later, even with the current state-of-the-art films, "Midnight Express" still has the same effect. Some movies are just made to last, and this is definitely one of them. Movie music has definitely changed since 1978 (and I am glad that it has), but otherwise this film shows us there can still be low budget films that endure the test of time. Highly recommended.
Summary of Midnight Express
Forever embroiled in controversy, Midnight Express divides viewers into opposing camps: those who think it's one of the most intense real-life dramas ever made, and those who abhor its manipulative tactics and alteration of facts for the exploitative purpose of achieving a desired effect. That effect is powerfully achieved, regardless of how you may feel about director Alan Parker and Oscar?-winning screenwriter Oliver Stone's interpretation of the story of Billy Hayes. It was the American Hayes--played by the late Brad Davis in an unforgettable performance--who was caught smuggling two kilograms of hashish while attempting to board a flight from Istanbul, Turkey, in 1970. He was sentenced to four years in a hellish Turkish prison on a drug possession charge, but his sentence was later extended (though not by 30 years, as the film suggests), and Hayes endured unthinkable brutality and torture before his escape in 1975.Unquestionably, this is a superbly crafted film, provoking a visceral response that's powerful enough to boil your blood. By the time Hayes erupts in an explosion of self-defensive violence, Parker and Stone have proven the power--and danger--of their skill. Their film is deeply manipulative, extremely xenophobic, and embellishes reality to heighten its calculated impact. Is that a crime? Not necessarily, and there's no doubt that Midnight Express is expertly directed and blessed with exceptional supporting performances (especially from John Hurt as a long-term prisoner). Still, it's obvious that strings are being pulled, and Parker, while applying his talent to a nefarious purpose, is a masterful puppeteer. --Jeff Shannon
Action & Adventure Video
Video Genres
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics
- Comedy
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama
- Educational
- Fitness
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror
- Kids & Family
- Military & War
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports
- Television
- Westerns
Movies most talked about in Action & Adventure Video
Around the World in 80 DaysWarner Home Video; Release date: 1992-12-04; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $5.90
Price in other shops:
Spymaker - The Secret Life of Ian FlemingTurner Home Ent; Release date: 1998-11-11; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
Bond: Living DaylightsUnited Artists; Release date: 2000-10-17; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $1.90
Price in other shops:
Moby DickMGM (Video & DVD); Release date: 1996-11-12; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $4.75
Price in other shops:
Lord of Flies (1963)Continental Distributing; Release date: 1993-08-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $64.95
The Tamarind SeedAvid Home Ent; Release date: 1998-01-01; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $59.99
Bond: On Her Majesty's Secret ServiceMGM (Video & DVD); Release date: 2000-05-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $4.99
Price in other shops:
Ivanhoe (1982)Sony Pictures; Release date: 1994-06-24; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $133.33
Literary Masterpieces: The Count of Monte CristoLive / Artisan; Release date: 1996-05-21; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $25.00
The African QueenCBS/Fox VIdeo; Release date: 1997-08-26; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $5.94
Price in other shops:
Similar Video, DVDs, Audio CDs
The Last Emperor - Criterion CollectionImage Entertainment; Release date: 2008-02-26; DVD
Best price: $39.90
Price in other shops:
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestNICHOLSON,JACK; Release date: 1997-12-17; DVD
Best price: $6.43
Price in other shops:
Tootsie - 25th Anniversary EditionSony; Release date: 2008-02-05; DVD
Best price: $12.01
Price in other shops:
Chinatown (Special Collector's Edition)Release date: 2007-11-06; DVD
Best price: $8.48
Price in other shops:
Deliverance (Deluxe Edition)Warner Brothers; Release date: 2007-09-18; DVD
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops:
Taxi Driver (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)Sony; Release date: 2007-08-14; DVD
Best price: $12.49
Price in other shops:
Midnight CowboyRelease date: 2000-01-01; DVD
Best price: $7.27
Price in other shops:
The Deer HunterRelease date: 1998-03-31; DVD
Best price: $6.39
Price in other shops:
Bonnie and ClydeRelease date: 1999-05-18; DVD
Best price: $5.80
Price in other shops:
PapillonDVD; Release date: 2005-05-31; DVD
Best price: $13.09
Price in other shops: