Midnight Express (1978)

Truth is the first victim of war, and Stone is at war...

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.'"
March 17, 2008

Clash of Freedoms

"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. February 20, 2008

the "shawshank redemption" of the 1970's

This film is horrifying, depressing, enraging, frustrating and somehow hopeful. It is a movie-going experiance that you will never forget. After seeing it five times over the past few years, I am still blown-away with each viewing. It is a very rare occurance when a film is this overwhelmingly powerful. February 8, 2008

A powerful film - then and now.

Midnight Express - coming out in '78 - gave us a cinematic view into the Middle East that the three-network evening news at the time didn't provide. The clash of cultures and values in this movie really stood in contrast to the "malaise" period in America (as Jimmy Carter put it). The film became more relevant when it was on television a few years later during the Iranian hostage crisis, with the clash of cultures playing out in real life. The idea of hell being a "Turkish prison" was popularized with this movie. Also the idea that America's post 60's values had become trivial compared to a world much older than it's just celebrated bicentennial. I think Alan Parker really made his mark with his direction of this movie. I followed many of his later efforts on the strength of this film. It's both brutally real and hallucinatory at the same time. There's a feeling of relief at the end of this movie like no other "prison escape" movie. The film is also notable as being one of Oliver Stone's early efforts as a screenwriter. This new dvd effort should improve on the 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION, which came out in the "early authored" dvd days of 1998. There are few more extras on this edition so it's a worthy upgrade and a definite must have if one is looking for a film that's an insight to the time, the cultures and even some perspective on where we are now. February 4, 2008

Midnight Express: The Billy Hayes Story!

Midnight Express is the 1978 film adaptation to the autobiographical book by Billy Hayes. The book and film tell of Hayes' attempt to smuggle drugs out of Turkey through an airplane flight.

I first saw this film a long time ago in a health class shown to the class as part of a drug lesson. I have always been a big fan of "Based on true stories films" so I saw this with an opened mind. I didn't expect it, however, to be this good!

Brad Davis' portrayal of Billy Hayes is one to be remembered. The script is written by Oliver Stone and Alan Parker's directing is excellent. However my only complaint is the fact that the film seems to have a few differences from the book that are either left out or replaced by something fictional.

I really recommend reading the book as it is an actual account of what happened to Hayes but I recommend also watching the film purely to see great film-making. The book I recommend for those who want to get an actual knowledge of what really happened.

Info on the DvD itself:

From www.dvdactive.com:

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced a 30th Anniversary of Midnight Express which stars Brad Davis, Bo Hopkins, Randy Quaid, and John Hurt. This two time Academy Award winner will be available to own from the 5th February, and should retail at around $19.94. Extra material will include a commentary with Director Alan Parker, a Producers' featurette, a Production featurette, a Finished Film featurette, a photo gallery, and the original theatrical trailer. Topping it all off will be a photo booklet and essay from Parker's on-set experiences. We've attached the official package artwork below. December 5, 2007

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