Review of Papillon (1973) by Blackity B — 14 Jun 2009

This was a strange movie. Strange in the fact that it's mostly fairly well made, with exotic settings and a fairly interesting story, but it has one glaring whole which is the characters.

Despite the efforts of two very talented lead actors, there is very little meat on the character's bones. Not only literally. We never really learn much about them, and have no reason to feel attached to them and their plight. They're just there, going through the motions. This disconnects us from the tension of the plot as well as maintaining a consistent interest in the narrative. The story goes forth, but after the isolated prison we have a hard time following it. And for a two hour and 1/2 movie, that's a long time not to care.