Steve McQueen plays the eponymous character in the movie ‘Papillon’, while Dustin Hoffman is his perfect foil as Dega. Based on the bestselling novel and with inputs from the author and the real life Papillon (Henri Charrière), the movie is authentic to the core with a fantastic production design. 

Several scenes in the movie served as an inspiration to many good films that followed including the all time classic—The Shawshank redemption. 

The film captures the ‘institutional’ feeling well and how inmates come to believe that the world they live in is the end of all and stay bereft of any hope. In the end, Papillon proves his feathers are too bright and he cannot be contained in any prison. No matter, how impossible the escape might seem to be.

Papillon’s spirit is captured in the following dialogue.

(Dega) “It seems so desperate. You think it will work?”

(Papillon) “Does it matter?”

Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman bring a unique texture to the film and make sure this film is worth a revisit anytime.

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Papillon dies

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers is a 1946 American film noir drama directed by Lewis Milestone from a screenplay written by Robert Rossen. Produced by Hal B. Wallis, the film stars Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Lizabeth Scott and features Kirk Douglas in his film debut.

Here are some interesting tidbits about the film (Source:Wikipedia)

1. This film marked Kirk Douglas’ screen debut.
2. Future film director and producer Blake Edwards had an uncredited bit part as a sailor who hitches a ride with Sam
3. The film’s ad campaign consisted only of teasers before its release: Newspapers ran ads reading, “Whisper her name!”, while radio spots had a woman repeatedly whispering, “Martha Ivers”.

Sometimes all it takes for things to go north or south, is just one moment. There could be a lot of incidents leading to that moment, but in the end all that matters is how one dealt with that single moment. And, everything changes after that.

William Foster encounters one such moment on a hot and humid afternoon, on a Los Angeles Freeway. And he reacts. He simply walks out of his car that is stuck in traffic jam and heads out on a path that he soon finds himself at a point of no return.

Michael Douglas as William Foster shines in a character that evokes empathy inspite of his actions, while Robert Duvall as Sergeant Prendergast, who is on his last day before retirement, does a fabulous job.

The best part of the movie is that the ‘falling down’ can happen to anyone and this quote from a review sums it up.

This guy is you, the movie suggests, and if not you exactly, then maybe the guy you’re one or two bad breaks from becoming. At one time or another, we’ve all thought these thoughts, and so when this downtrodden, laid-off, teed-off L.A. defense worker gets out of his car on a sweltering day in the middle of rush hour and decides he’s not going to take any more, it comes as no surprise”, adding “as he did in Fatal Attraction and Wall Street, Douglas again takes on the symbolic mantle of the Zeitgeist.

Hal Hinson, The Washington Post

Tailpiece:
Films like  'Mad City' (John Travolta- Dustin Hoffman), John Q (Denzel Washington-Robert Duvall) explored a similar concept, ala reverse buddy cop films.