Midnight Express

Giorgio Moroder's kinetic, Oscar-winning score drives this tense true-story thriller about an American student thrown into the brutal reality of the Turkish prison system.

Based on a true story, American college student Billy Hayes is caught by the Turkish police trying to smuggle hash out of Istanbul. Sentenced to four years in a Turkish prison, Hayes encounters a hellish and draconian prison system. His only small reprieve is the connections he forms with the other inmates. When his sentence is inexplicably extended to 30 years, Billy begins to plan a daring escape.

Curator’s note
Written by Oliver Stone and directed by Alan Parker, Midnight Express caused a stir at the time for its salacious treatment of the source material. The film went on to become a huge hit and win multiple awards including Oscar’s for Best Adapted Screenplay for Stone and Best Original Score for Giorgio Moroder. The film’s propulsive, disco tinged theme song Chase became an unexpected hit, which Moroder modelled after the track he produced and co-wrote for Donna Summer, I Feel Love.