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Midnight Express

Midnight Express

Drama · Crime · 1978

Billy Hayes is caught attempting to smuggle drugs out of a country. The courts decide to make an example of him, sentencing him to more than 30 years in prison. Hayes has two opportunities for release: the appeals made by his lawyer, his family, and the American government, or the "Midnight Express".

Movie details

Midnight Express

“Walk into the incredible true experience of Billy Hayes. And bring all the courage you can.”

1978 Drama · Crime 2h 1m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

7.5 / 10

93.9K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

90 %

Tomatometer

Metacritic

59 / 100

Metascore

TMDB

7.4 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

Billy Hayes is caught attempting to smuggle drugs out of a country. The courts decide to make an example of him, sentencing him to more than 30 years in prison. Hayes has two opportunities for release: the appeals made by his lawyer, his family, and the American government, or the "Midnight Express".

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Midnight Express?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Where it lives

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Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.

Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Alan Parker

Written by

Oliver Stone

Brad Davis

Brad Davis

Billy Hayes

Irene Miracle

Irene Miracle

Susan

Bo Hopkins

Bo Hopkins

Tex

Paolo Bonacelli

Paolo Bonacelli

Rifki

Paul L. Smith

Paul L. Smith

Hamidou

Randy Quaid

Randy Quaid

Jimmy Booth

Norbert Weisser

Norbert Weisser

Erich

Court is in session

Put Midnight Express on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.