swap_horiz Papillon (2017) Alternatives

1

Le Trou

Jacques Becker’s *Le Trou* (The Hole) is a seminal 1960 French prison film. The movie gained recognition for its remarka...

Classic French Escape 1960S

9.5 Brilliant

2

Starred Up

Starred Up is a 2013 British prison drama by David Mackenzie, notable for Jack O'Connell's violent young offender placed...

Youth British Violence 2010S

8.2 Great

3

A Twelve-Year Night

A Twelve-Year Night is Alvaro Brechner's 2018 Uruguayan-led drama about Tupamaro prisoners, including future president J...

True Story Political Uruguayan 2010S

7.8 Good

4

In Prison Awaiting Trial

In Prison Awaiting Trial is a 1971 Italian drama by Nanni Loy, notable for Alberto Sordi's Kafkaesque ordeal in Italy's...

Italian Drama 1970S Legal

7.6 Good

5

The Prisoner (1955)

The Prisoner is a 1955 British psychological drama by Peter Glenville, starring Alec Guinness and nominated for five BAF...

Drama Political 1950S Interrogation

7.6 Good

6

Clemency

Clemency is Chinonye Chukwu's 2019 U.S. death-row drama; she was the first Black woman to win Sundance's U.S. Dramatic G...

Drama 2010S Death Row Warden

7.6 Good

7

King Rat

King Rat is a 1965 POW film written and directed by Bryan Forbes, adapted from James Clavell's Changi Prison-based novel...

Drama 1960S War Pow

7.5 Good

8

The One That Got Away

The One That Got Away is a 1957 British war film about Franz von Werra, the only Axis POW to escape Allied captivity and...

True Story Escape 1950S Pow

7.2 Good

9

The Mustang

The Mustang is Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre's 2019 prison drama, starring Matthias Schoenaerts as an inmate in a wild-hors...

Drama Rehabilitation 2010S Horse Training

7.2 Good

10

The Colditz Story

The Colditz Story is a 1955 British POW escape film by Guy Hamilton, based on Pat Reid's memoir of imprisonment at Coldi...

Escape British 1950S Pow

7.1 Good

11

The Wooden Horse

The Wooden Horse is a 1950 British POW escape film directed by Jack Lee, based on Eric Williams's Stalag Luft III tunnel...

Escape British 1950S Pow

7.0 Good

12

O.G.

O.G. is Madeleine Sackler's 2018 U.S. prison drama starring Jeffrey Wright, filmed entirely inside Indiana's Pendleton C...

Modern Drama 2010S Reentry

6.9 Fair

13

McVicar

McVicar is a 1980 British prison drama by Tom Clegg, starring Roger Daltrey as armed robber and later writer John McVica...

Escape British 1980S Biopic

6.8 Fair

14

Crown Heights

Crown Heights is a 2017 biographical legal drama, notable for recounting Colin Warner's wrongful murder conviction and h...

Drama True Story 2010S Wrongful

6.7 Fair

15

Devil's Island (1939)

Devil's Island is a 1939 American prison film directed by William Clemens, notable for casting Boris Karloff in a sympat...

Classic Escape 1930S Penal Colony

6.1 Fair

16

Up the River

Up the River is a 1930 John Ford prison comedy, notable as the feature-film debut of both Spencer Tracy and Humphrey Bog...

Classic Comedy Escape 1930S

5.9 Mediocre

17

The Big Bird Cage

The Big Bird Cage is a 1972 women-in-prison exploitation film by Jack Hill, notable for Pam Grier and Sid Haig in a Phil...

Exploitation Escape 1970S Women

5.8 Mediocre

18

Wedlock

Wedlock is a 1991 HBO sci-fi action film by Lewis Teague, starring Rutger Hauer as a thief trapped by linked explosive p...

Sci Fi Escape Thriller 1990S

5.6 Mediocre

19

State Penitentiary

State Penitentiary is a 1950 Lew Landers prison drama starring Warner Baxter in his final film role, with scenes shot at...

Classic Escape 1950S Wrongful

5.4 Mediocre

20

Riot (2015)

Riot is a 2015 American prison action film directed by John Lyde, starring Matthew Reese, Dolph Lundgren, and Chuck Lidd...

Action Fighting Undercover 2010S

4.9 Poor