Midnight Express

This is based upon a real life story!It's been featured on National Geographic's show called=Locked up Abroad!In the 70's while boarding an international flight out of Istanbul Airport.A young american named BILLY HAYES is caught attempting to smuggle 2 kilos of hashish out of the country.The drugs were strapped to his body.Uh-Oh things didn't work out like he planned.While his girlfriend that was with him managed to get on the plane.He got nailed & the story will have you glued from there on.He is taken into custody to the powers to be.They laugh & belittle him while stripping him naked{nice tush shot}*For the female fans.He is told that he will be released if he cooperates with the authorities in identifying the person who actually sold him the hash.He didnt sell out!Billy tries to makes a run for it & is recaptured.He is initially sentenced to serve just over 4 years for possession.With no time for the more harsh crime of smuggling drugs.The prison environment is inhospitable in every sense.The prison warden is one mean sadistic animal & he dishes out the worse physical torture as well as mental abuse.The other inmates that had been there for a while were zombies from the torture they had been exposed to.You will be surprised @ one of the americans he makes friends with who is still known in hollywood today.I saw this movie when it came out on the big screen.I had a huge crush on BRAD DAVIS who sadly died from something close of the content of this movies plot.He did fabulous job & he also starred in SYBIL.It starred Sally Field with JO Anne Woodward.This was a gripping story of the real deal{THEN}if you get into trouble transporting drugs overseas.The turkish prison had hellish conditions that unto itself would make any one crazy.I won't spoil the story line{u have to see it for your self}billy i order to survive had too dig deep into the pit of human strength to grab every oz of fight it took to survive the hot mess he got into.There is a breaking point that had producers in limbo & they walked off set.Billy lost it a few times but that time was a bit vivid be prepared.{BLOODY}The movie was based upon BILLY HAYES real life experience who was featured in the highlights in the main menu on the dvd i have & i recently saw his story on Nat/Geo's show called locked up abroad~His account was pretty much close to the same but hollywood amped it up a bit.Ive never forgotten this movie!#1 I adored Brad Davis his death was ironic in lue of the subject matter of this film years later.A shame because he had looks & talent.When i watch this movie now i think how sad that he lived a part in this movie that was ultimately his demise in his real life & death.It's a poignant look into the world of drug smuggling on an individual level no cartels or glamorized drug rings.He was young it was the 70's sad to say "everybody was doing it" here or there.He jus had the foolish guts to do it & it was something he paid for 10 fold.You are not an American w/freedom if you make those types of choices in a country less than the diplomacy we have in U.S.A.The sadistic prison warden i think was harder on him because he was strong fought back & was american.Unlike the native captives under his rule who seemed use to his abuse.It was a matter of making an example out of him power trip per say Billy wasnt the only one that got the henoius physical abuse.From the distain the prison warden who i felt like had hatred any way but focused alot more on americans.The famliy notion in the film as touching as his father tried.It made me think because these things have & do happen to our fellow americans like P.O.W's,Radicals that kidnapp people for political reasons for ransom/& drug smuggling that still happens today.A stunning performance by Brad Davis & his determination along with the struggle within was as good as it gets.He had to fight or fall down & live in the hell he put upon himself!It has a well deserved ending & he lived to tell his story & this movie was about his experience.WATCH IT YOU WILL ENJOY IT...Its one i rewatch from time to time!

As I think back over the decades, there have been a fair number of memorable films that I originally saw in the theatres and which have endured as favorites on DVD. Films like ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, DRESSED TO KILL, ALIENS, THE STUNT MAN, THELMA & LOUISE, and THE ABYSS.But for every decade, I can identify one theatrical release that hit me like a freight train, and which in my mind has become a cinematic monument. In the 1960s, it was BONNIE & CLYDE. In the 1980s, it was BETTY BLUE (37'2 LE MATIN). In the 1990s, it was BASIC INSTINCT. And so far in the current decade, I would give the honor to CHICAGO. I skipped the 1970s, but you know which film it was: MIDNIGHT EXPRESS.I have read the reviews, and a good many of them deal with political issues, and whether the film is faithful to the facts. But just as I don't judge, say, Madonna's music based on my views of the singer as a human being, or whether the lyrics she writes are expressions of honesty, I don't judge films based on anything beyond what is actually produced on celluloid.Various reviewers have praised the gritty cinematography, the Oscar-caliber acting, the riveting storyline, the Moroder score, and other aspects of this film. I cannot agree more. To my mind, a masterpiece is born when every element of the filmmaker's art converges perfectly to create a rare cinematic experience. This is the case for MIDNIGHT EXPRESS. When I walked out of the theater on my first viewing, I was shaken to the bone. The impact has since been diluted somewhat due to repeated viewings on VHS and on DVD, but my opinion of the film has not changed one iota. For me, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS is still the number one cinematic masterpiece of the 1970s. This is a very personal appreciation, but I'm sure that any serious film student who is able to objectively analyze the film within the exclusive context of cinematic art would have to conclude that MIDNIGHT EXPRESS is a true masterpiece.When it comes to purchasing a film for viewing, there are any number of criteria: the artistic achievement of the film (e.g., MOULIN ROUGE), the extent to which the story is compelling (e.g., JAWS), how well the story is told (e.g., CLUELESS), and the psychological impact the film will have on the viewer (e.g., THE EXORCIST). Notice how the cited examples (I chose some obvious ones) arguably only satisfy one or two of these specific criteria.Films that thoroughly satisfy are BONNE & CLYDE, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS, BETTY BLUE, BASIC INSTINCT, and CHICAGO, and they all achieve masterpiece status in my pantheon. Not that others don't (e.g., MY FAIR LADY). But these are the films, one per decade, that I've placed highest on my altar.I highly recommend this film to the objective viewer. You may or may not agree with my qualifying MIDNIGHT EXPRESS as a rare cinematic masterpiece, but you will never forget the raw emotional experience of it (personally, I've always found it more uplifting than depressing). In fact, in every way that a film can, this one will haunt you for life.

Everybody out there who's gotten into trouble with the law and not given any thought before hand as to what being in jail is like, I strongly advise you to watch this film. Some critics at the time of its release criticized Brad Davis for overacting. When it comes to portraying a prisoner, I don't see how there's any such thing as "overacting." Alan Parker obviously had a vision clear as a bell of what he wanted when directing this film. Too bad he lost the Oscar nomination for Best Director. You can't find a story told with more thoroughness and rawness than Midnight Express. It's very disturbing and definitely not appropriate for young children. Parents, please! I beg you profusely. Either forbid your children to watch this or watch it very, very closely with them and carefully explain everything well. This film I believe is guaranteed to give children nightmares; far more than any fictional horror movie could. But, at the same time, the film does, in a way, have a happy ending. Billy Hayes (the main character played by Brad Davis) does escape from being held prisoner in Turkey and managed to get home to America safely. To this day he's free, alive and well. He's married and enjoying a career as a writer, actor and director. So there is light at the end of this very dark tunnel. But until then, Midnight Express is a very dark, gripping, and intensely violent movie to watch. Please keep that in mind.

This isn’t a movie review. The seller was swift and everything was as expected.