Papillon

All present and accounted for, sir.

Thank you, Captain.

As of this moment...

...you are the property of

the Penal Administration of French Guiana.

After serving your full terms in prison...

...those of you with sentences...

...of eight years or more...

...will remain in Guiana...

...as workers and colonists...

...for a period equal

to that of your original sentences.

As for France...

...the nation has disposed of you.

France has rid herself of you altogether.

Forget France and put your clothes on.

Papillon! Papi!

You'll be back, Papillon.

Don't worry, you'll be back.

No, you won't.

You, that way.

Down there. You, too.

Next, over here. Come along.

Come on. Come in here.

You, too.

Over there.

Come along, up there. Hurry up.

You, too. Down.

Down. In there.

In there.

Come along, now. Down.

Come on down. Down there.

Come on, up there.

In there.

We're really something, aren't we?

The only animals in the world

that shove things up their ass for survival.

The first time I shoved one up my gut...

...it infected me so bad

the camp doctor had to cut it out.

He doesn't have any ether...

...so he knocks me out with rum.

Then you know what he did?

He stole it.

A butterfly.

You're Papillon, aren't you?

Yeah.

The bastards gave you life.

Right to the end of the line, they think.

It may not be as long as you think.

Forty percent of us will die...

...the first year out.

They gave him life, too.

The kid's only 18.

Look at him. No wonder he dreams.

He'll never make it.

But a man like you could make it...

...if you have enough money.

How long were you there?

Nine years of work camp...

...nine years a colonist.

You were outside the walls.

Why didn't you run?

There's no place to run to.

You're out in the middle of a swamp,

Now, if you've got a lot of money

that's a different thing.

I mean, you take somebody

like Dega there. Back there.

Louis Dega.

The best counterfeiter in France.

National Defense Bonds.

-Series of 1928.

-Right.

Now, if you've got money like he has,

there's a chance to buy your way out.

That is unless somebody cuts

his guts open first to get at all that cash.

Everybody up! Let's go!

Everybody up!

Come on, everybody up! Let's go!

Let's go!

Mind if I sit down here?

If you wish.

You're Dega, aren't ya? Louis Dega?

Sorry to see you here.

I presume most of us have earned

our passage.

You're Papillon. You got life for killing

a pimp. Then you had the bad taste...

...to tell the prosecutor you were going

to escape and kill him, too.

I was framed. I'm innocent.

No one is innocent.

I'm no pimp killer, for Christ's sake.

I'm a safecracker.

And that's a profession of which

I thoroughly disapprove.

I put almost everything I had

into National Defense Bonds.

Series of 1928.

Your instincts were sound.

How much did you lose?

I wouldn't put my money on those bonds.

Not any more than you would.

I'm relieved to hear that.

If that's true,

why are we having this little chat?

Every convict on this ship knows

who you are.

Any of them would slit you open to

reach inside and get what you're carrying.

So?

You need protection.

From you?

Remember what the chicken said

to the weasel?

If he was a healthy weasel, the chicken

didn't get a chance to say anything.

Think about that.

Hose down!

Come on, off your asses! Hose down!

Come on, you've got a fever.

Do what I tell ya.

Come on.

Julot!

I've got a question.

If I wanted to get a boat when I got there,

a small boat, maybe a 15-footer...

...how much would it cost?

I don't know. Fr 3,500, Fr 4,500, maybe.

It all depends.

What if I could pick up the money

to buy one?

Then I guess you'd have yourself a boat.

You know the country.

You and I could make it out of there. Huh?

The answer is no. Nothing against you,

but the answer is no.

If I've gotta go to solitary for

some half-assed escape that didn't work...

...l want the mistake to be mine,

not anybody else's. You understand?

So the answer is no.

How'd it feel, kid?

Good.

All right. Come on, move it!

Move it a little. Let's go!

Let's move!

What do you want?

Almost unbearable, isn't it?

What?

The heat.

It's not too bad.

Of course, you're closer to it than I am.

Oh, yes. You're referring to last night,

aren't you?

Well, aren't you?

May I tell you something?

At first glance I'm afraid

that I regarded you with rather...

...a large degree of unworthy suspicion.

Am I clear?

No.

Well, it now seems quite possible

that until we get to a decent jail...

...with bribeable guards,

I may stand in some need of...

...rather close physical protection.

It depends on how long you want to live.

Oh, a long time.

Then you got a problem.

Well, I presume that you have some...

...goals, some particular need that...

...outweighs all others.

I mean, if so, may I ask what it is?

Money.

For what?

Escape.

Very good.

You keep me alive...

...until we land in Guiana and I will

underwrite any escape you care to arrange.

Escape for me. Not for us.

Of course.

I have no intention of even attempting

an escape. Ever.

Done.

Thank you.

Leave him alone...

...or I'll cut your head off!

Hide this!

Over there is Saint Joseph.

The other island is Royale.

The one on the right is Devil's.

Julot, why is it so hard

to escape from there?

A man could almost swim to the mainland.

No, there must be a better way

than swimming.

No, no, swimming's not the way.

The current is so strong it'll push you

right back where you started from.

You know, when you're on those islands

you're there for keeps.

Where do we go?

We go up the Moroni River.

Then we dock at Saint Laurent.

That's where they decide whether

to send you to the work camps or...

...to the islands.

You see those two on the dock

with the guns?

Right over there.

They served their time.

Now they're colonists.

They've turned man hunter.

Man hunter?

Yeah, you escape, they hunt.

For money, I presume, a reward.

Jesus!

Get ready to move!

Line up to disembark.

I'm going to have an accident going down

that gangplank and it's gotta look good...

...so lend me your shiv.

What the hell for?

Because I'm a two-time loser.

No matter what happens, I'll be sent

to the islands on the next transport.

I have to get in the hospital

to give me time to think.

Now give me that shiv!

You're crazy, Julot.

Single file down the gangplank. March.

Hold it! Hold it!

Let's go!

Single file!

Move! Let's go!

Bring a stretcher.

Single file, single file.

Take him away!

-All right, move! Move!

-Let's go!

Move it!

Come on, move 'em!

Let's go! Come on!

Column, march!

Keep moving.

You two, pick him up, quickly!

Attention!

Welcome to the Penal Colony...

...of French Guiana...

...whose prisoners you are...

...and from which there is no escape.

First attempts at escape...

...add two years in solitary

to existing sentences.

Second attempts, add five more.

Of course, more serious offenses...

...are dealt with in this fashion.

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