Papillon (1973)

Franklin J. Schaffner (Patton) directs this true story of Henri Charriere (better known as "Papillon" or "the butterfly"), a prisoner so determined to escape the notorious Devil's Island, he attempted it multiple times until he reached old age. Steve McQueen plays Charriere, and Dustin Hoffman is very good as the hero's anxious, defenseless friend. Based on Charriere's own memoir and uncompromisingly adapted by screenwriters Dalton Trumbo (Johnny Got His Gun) and Lorenzo Semple Jr. (Three Days of the Condor), the film is tough going (it is set, after all, on Devil's Island) but not gratuitously violent. There are sequences that stay with one for a long time, such as Papillon's brief stay at a leper colony and the long periods of starvation and solitary confinement he endures after each attempted flight. --Tom Keogh Amazon.com essential video

papillion

One of the best movies ever made. Based on true events, and Steve McQueen,
Dustin Hoffman made it great. Just wonderful. I have watched it 10 or mor times. Thank you. December 14, 2008

One of the best movies EVER made.

If you like adventure movies, if you like movies that are excellently casted, if you like to root for the underdog... this movie is for you. In fact, if you are a living, breathing human being, this movie is for you. It is a wonderfully acted intriguing story... and is or should be in the ranks of must see movies like Casablanca or Seven Samurai. Do yourself a favor and at least rent this! October 11, 2008

PAPILON

For any STEVE McQEEN FANS out there this will make a fine addtion to your STEVE McQUEEN DVD COLLECTION I wish they will come out with a speacal edtion of this movie like they did with COOL HAND LUKE. September 24, 2008

Indomitable spirit

"Papillon" is the apparently true story of Henri Charriere, the only person to successfully escape from Devil's Island off French Guiana. There is little argument that the real Henri was not a felon; he seems to have spent the majority of his formative years (and later) in and out of various prisons. The premise in "Papillon", however, is that he was sent away at that time for a crime that he did not commit. Regardless of the truth, the story is gripping and plausible, and well worth the time, though the movie is about a half-hour too long.

Papillon is portrayed by Steve McQueen, in arguably the best performance of his career, certainly the role with the most emotional depth. I have always been a fan of McQueen's; I truly believe he was cheated out of an Oscar here, as he becomes Henri Charriere completely, weathering abysmal prison conditions and surviving by sheer will. He befriends fellow convict Louis Dega (Dustin Hoffman, another great performance), a first-rate forger transported for defrauding the French Government with fake bonds. He is known to be wealthy, and therefore a target for assassins within the prison system (the method of retaining funds is gruesome; a tube inserted into the rectum of the prisoner for safekeeping) so Louis approaches Papillon for protection. This arrangement develops over time into a friendship, sometimes tenuous, but it works throughout the movie, as the two convicts go through atrocious events together.

The film seems to span long years; at least two long solitary confinements for Papillon for escape attempts; and goes very in depth about the nature of the prison system, its priveledges and punishments, and the manner of survival in almost any situation you could dream up. The French Colonial prison system was a model of barbarism, and its remains can still be seen on various islands; it is something of an irony, however, that the islands purported to be inescapeable and therefore not guarded that closely (the sea was full of sharks which were considered to be enough of a deterrent to escape attempts)are now resorts. If you have enough cash now, you can sit on Dreyfus's Bench yourself.

This was a great movie; not perhaps to everyone's taste, but a harrowing film nonetheless, with wonderful performances by McQueen and Hoffman. There is also a great score by Jerry Goldsmith, which perfectly complements the action in the film. August 27, 2008

McQueen excellent

McQueen carries film beautifully. One of his finest performances.

The real story behind the story is that Henri Charriere, who wrote the novel the movie is based on, "borrowed" heavily from what other convicts' lived through, and one in particular--the real Papillon, who died in France a couple of years back.

Don't get me wrong, Charriere did his share of time on Devil's Island, it's just that not everything that takes place in the film actually happened to him.

Author Gerard de Villiers delves into it in a book entitled A BUTTERFLY PINNED. August 3, 2008

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