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Midnight Express (1978)

Director: Alan Parker

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1 review

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

A meaty anecdote, heavily fictionalised from a factual source, about an American kid on a dope charge going through Hell in a Turkish jail. Some of the performances (Hurt, Davis) give it an illusion of depth, but it's mostly expert in avoiding moral resonance and ambiguity: everything is satisfyingly clear-cut, just as every shot and every cut are geared to instant emotional impact. Political, moral and aesthetic problems arise when you try to superimpose the film on the 'truth' it purports to represent. As a head-banging thriller, though, it makes some of Hollywood's hoariest stereotypes seem good as new, and it panders to its audience's worst instincts magnificently.

Author: TR

Time Out Film Guide


User reviews of this film

  • Atom said...
    Posted on Mar 18 2008 05:47 Class film, intense,know its based on real, but come on, you have to add bits to make film better for film lovers, and there is noting wrong with that.Want to watch a documentry?then watch a documentry! Great film, 10 out of 10,Some people make the most silly comments lol. get real lol
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