Papillon

A grim, authentically brutal film about the escape of notorious French felon Henri "Papillon" Charriere (Steve McQueen) from the supposedly inescapable prison fortress of Devil's Island. The story begins in the streets of Marseilles in the 1930s, with French soldiers escorting a large group of prisoners to the docks. Among them are McQueen, a convicted murderer, and Hoffman, a big-time stock swindler who still has a lot of money hidden. During the ensuing voyage, a couple of brutal murderers attempt to kill Hoffman but McQueen saves him. Once in Cayenne McQueen thinks only about escape. He attacks a guard who abuses Hoffman, and makes a break, only to be later reca...