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Slaughterhouse-Five 15 rating

This adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s novel follows Billy Pilgrim’s journeys in time as he flits between WWII Dresden and a future on planet Tralfamadore.

Comedy 1972 103 mins

Director: George Roy Hill

CC

Overview

In this adaptation of cult author Kurt Vonnegut’s celebrated novel, Billy Pilgrim becomes ‘unstuck in time’, flitting between different eras including war-time Dresden and a future existence on the planet of Tralfamadore. With its fractured narrative, European setting and lack of major stars, Slaughterhouse-Five is a distinctly high-brow and sophisticated sci-fi from a major Hollywood studio.

Vonnegut himself was highly enamoured with the adaptation, calling it “flawless” and the film went on to win the Prix du Jury at Cannes 1972. It can perhaps now be best appreciated as the missing link between heady European sci-fi such as Je t’aime Je t’aime and later, more experimental Hollywood spectaculars like The Fountain and Cloud Atlas.

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