To be completely honest I had forgotten this movie exists. Papillon is a remake of the 1973 prison escape film that starred Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman. This version, which quietly debuted last year at TIFF, stars Charlie Hunnam and Bohemian Rhapsody’s Rami Malek with Danish director Michael Noer at the helm. That it didn’t get much buzz and is only coming out now is probably not a good sign.
The trailer isn’t especially bad, but there’s little that sets it apart. Based on a true story and a pair of two autobiographies by Henri Charriere, the story centers on the titular Parisian criminal (Hunnam) who is framed for murder and sent to a penal colony on Devil’s Island. There he befriends a white collar criminal named Louis Vega (Malek) who agrees to fund his escape. Roland Møller, Tommy Flanagan, and Eve Hewson co-star. The script comes from Contraband and Prisoners writer Aaron Guzikowski, so maybe he can find some new angle on the story.
Papillon opens August 24th.
