Steve McQueen plays Henri Charriere, a French safecracker convicted of murdering a pimp in early 20th century Paris. His sentence: transportation to French Guiana, a tropical paradise but murder on convicts, with the diseases, harsh labor, and mistreatment by the brutal guards.
Despite warnings from the administrator that escape attempts would be dealt with harshly, including the guillotine for incorrigibles, Papillon continually tries to escape and the film shows the dichotomy of solitary confinement, escape attempt, recapture, solitary confinement, escape, and so on. Throughout his quest, the only friend Papi has is his despised comrade, Louis Dega (Dustin Hoffman) a convicted forger who requires protection from the rougher elements in the prison. Papillon defends Dega because Dega has plenty of cash in his "plan", a small metal tube that the prisoners keep stored in their only safe hiding place - their lower bowel. On their trip over to Guiana on the prison ship the need for protection was adequately demonstrated as the man in the next hammock to Dega's belly was slit for the contents of his plan. He immediately hired Papi as his bodyguard, and in gratitude financed many of Papi's escape attempts, even accompanying him on one.
Papillon means "butterfly" and McQueen is adopted by a native Indian tribe on one of his escapes. He is required to reproduce his butterfly tattoo on the chief's chest. After his eventual recapture, Papi is relegated to "Devil's Island," the worst prison on earth. There he meets up again with Dega, a trustee now, who is raising pigs in a hut of his own. It is comic to see Dega interact with the swine; apparently he is suffering from mental illness from long confinement and abuse. After all this, Papillon still plots his escape. He sits long hours each day on the "Dreyfuss Seat", named for famous prisoner Alfred Dreyfuss, a rock formation that overlooks the harbor, watching the churning seas, and figuring the tides. Both he and Dega are old, having served more than twenty years in that hellhole in the Caribbean.
McQueen is wonderful as the indomitable prisoner, Papillon. He is single-minded and tough. Even at the point of starvation he will not buckle to the power of the guards. No matter how hopeless his chances, he refuses to give up hope. Dega, well portrayed by Dustin Hoffman, was also an interesting character. Billy Mumy, of Lost in Space, also plays a bit role in the film. Richard Angarola as the Commandant delivers one of the most memorable lines, "Make the best of what we offer you, and you will suffer less than you deserve." But all in all the movie belongs to McQueen, and he is dynamic and interesting.
The photography is well done and the editing keeps the pace of the two and a half hour movie moving along. The script is absolutely wonderful and makes this movie a classic.
Those who like prison movies will also like Steve McQueen in The Great Escape, as well as movies such as Cool Hand Luke, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Green Mile.
One man sentenced to life in the French prison system refuses to give up trying to escape even when transferred to the prison colony on Devil's Island...More at Family Video
DVDS. The autobiography of {$Henri Charriere}, one of the few people to successfully escape from the notorious French penal colony of Devil's Island, ...More at DeepDiscount.com
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2010 Shopping.com, Inc.