Papillon is a powerful film about persistence. Steve McQueen gives a gritty and raw lead performance — and it is my favourite one of his that I’ve seen to date. Dustin Hoffman is also a standout in his supporting role. The production design is fantastic, perfectly emphasising the dirty and inhumane conditions our main characters are forced to endure. My main issues with the film are how repetitive it feels. By that I mean, a character or characters will show up, help our main characters and then either die or disappear offscreen and never be mentioned again. Then there’s the random voice over narration at the end that removes any ambiguity for the fate of the titular character