Evidently we're supposed to take this as a sort of "triumph of the human spirit" story. I don't really buy that, as IMHO a great human spirit would never become a professional safecracker like the title character did. However, McQueen, as him, is his usual unbendable tough loner type who somehow is never without some core of decency, and Hoffman as a counterfeiter always somehow manages to be a likable criminal. A good, solid adventure movie with unique virtues

Boxoffice winner based on the autobiographical writings of French thief Henri Charriere. Excellent portrayal of prison life and fine performances from the prisoners. Certain segments would have been better left on the cutting room floor. The film's title refers to the lead's butterfly tattoo.

Hoffman is very good, but McQueen is absolutely fantastic and carries the film entirely on his own with a very nuanced and varied character transformation. While the pacing could be a bit quicker, the events are always gripping as the film departs from many standard conventions.

hoffman and mcqueen, prison film - nuff said.

Second half was way too bad compared to the fabulous first half.

A well-acted but dramatically inert prison-break drama that takes pains to be realistically grimy.

3-4-2010 Great in its time and many years after it came out, nice now.

McQueen is brilliant and Hoffman doesn't come far behind. The first half is superb but the second is much more uneven.