Midnight Express (1978)

John Hurt: Max

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Quotes 

• Max : The best thing to do is to get your ass out of here. Best way that you can.

  Billy Hayes : Yeah, but how?

  Max : Catch the midnight express.

  Billy Hayes : But what's that?

  Max : [laughs]  Well it's not a train. It's a prison word for... escape. But it doesn't stop around here.

• Jimmy : The second way out, I need you guy's help, and that's under.

  Billy Hayes : You mean tunnel? Are you serious?

  Max : This is Shagmahr prison, not Stalag 17.

  Jimmy : Well that's where you're wrong fuckface, 'cause it's already built!

• Max : There are no straight lawyers in Turkey. All bent. Bent, as happens, occupational necessity. They have special classes in corruption at night school. If you get suspected of honesty, then you get disbarred.

• [Billy, Max and Jimmy are going over blueprints of the prison] 

  Jimmy : There's two ways out, I figure. Over the roof, but that's only one person, maybe two. The other way is under.

  Billy Hayes : Tunnel?

  Jimmy : It's already built! There's a basement substructure where they used to keep weapons and stuff, but beneath that there's these old catacombs that the Christians built about a thousand fucking years ago to bury their dead. We're sitting right on top of it - here. The Kraut said there's a whole bunch of hollow sealed shafts sort of like dumbwaiters running along this wall. One of them is right in there, right next to our shower. We can get in there, he says, we can get down into the catacombs. With the three of us working...

  Max : [tapping at the wall]  Gotta be here someplace. Thought I heard a couple of dead Christians singing down there.

  Jimmy : Stop shitting me, man!

  Billy Hayes : But how would you get into the shaft, Jimmy?

  Max : I suppose you knock three times and ask for St. Peter.