The Midnight Express, a film adaptation of Billy Haye’s memoires of imprisonment in a Turkish jail for drug smuggling, became a commercial and critical success after its release in 1978. To this day, perceptions of Turkey amongst the public are coloured by the images of barbarism portrayed in the film. Dilek Kaya-Mutlu’s book on the Midnight Express “phenomenon” explores the success of the film and how this became implanted in public opinions of Turkey through its being promoted as a “true story”. Kaya-Mutlu is not the first to note the overt racist and homophobic messages of the film, but she broadens the discussion into the first monograph in English or Turkish. She considers how The Midnight Express initiated a theme of third-world imprisonment in cinema and why the controversy surrounding the movie still exists today. Kaya-Mutlu also explores the subtle differences in reactions towards the film which are observable in different cultures and countries. This book is a unique contribution to studies of the development of Turkey’s image in the world.
