An aimless bumbler is pushed into service during World War II and later winds up in a German prison camp known as Slaughterhouse 5 . But his life takes a strange turn when the ties that bind him to normal time and space loosen. Flipping from the war to an extraterrestrial zoo, the hapless hero sees different phases of his life but never quite understands what is expected from him.
George Roy Hill's adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's whimsical antiwar black comedy--an immensely popular novel at the time of the film's release because of its implicit condemnation of the war in Vietnam--stars Michael Sacks as the placid Billy Pilgrim. He's become "unstuck in time," as the author describes him, or more prosaically, he's had a nervous breakdown as a result of a recurrence of the trauma of witnessing the horrific Allied firebombing of Dresden in 1945. The desultory narrative has Billy jumping from his war experience to his future on the planet Tralfamadore with the buxom Montana Wildhack (Valerie Perrine), then to an episode of shock therapy, then to an episode in his childhood, and then to his life as a relatively unhappy suburban optometrist. Throughout, the naive Billy remains a curious mixture of kindness and detachment, the best combination of qualities one could have, the author seems to imply, for surviving in a world of meaningless suffering. Vonnegut's novel may be unfilmable, and Hill may have been too cautious a choice as director, but he does a good job of conveying many of the qualities of the author's elusive style. Michael Sacks possesses the requisite air of innocence for his role, and Ron Liebman gives a great performance as a choleric fellow G.I.
Shooting locations: Minnesota and the Czech Republic.
George Roy Hill chose to shoot in the city of Most outside of Prague because its architecture most closely resembled that of Dresden and because the city itself was unavailable, since it was still part of East Germany at the time.
In the mid-1990s a group named Billy Pilgrim, named after the main character of Vonnegut's novel, released a few CDs.
Slaughterhouse Five Reviews:
"[I]t's a finely crafted lost treasure from New Hollywood's short-lived heyday."
-- Stephen Dalton, Uncut
Anti-war statement Saw the movie when it first came out (approximately 35 yrs ago). Enjoyed it as much now. Like the soft approach to an anti-war statement. Submitted by Bernie (Ponoka, Alberta, Canada) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Read the book first .it's my all time favorite novel.The does a great job trying to convey the comlex story. Submitted by Mac (Mass) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
great sci/fi, and thought provoking. I recommend this movie to anyone who loves a good story --funny, whimsical, & interesting. Submitted by stevebodine (Mesa, Az.) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
great sci/fi, and thought provoking. I recommend this movie to anyone who loves a good story --funny, whimsical, & interesting. Submitted by steve (Mesa, Az.) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
It hits you sideways If you like time travle movies then you will like this. In places it is a bit far reaching. But, for pure fun you can't beat it. Like taffy it will get stuck in the teeth of your mind long after the movie credits have rolled. Just don't go in with a serious mind, and even if you find yourself wanting to be serious (Which the movie at times will attempt to do) just remember its only a movie. I gave it four stars not becasue of the acting or the filmography. Everything is done wrong in this movie, but somehow works. Strange, funny, and thought provoking, simplistic in its message.
Tom R.
Black Deep Submitted by BLACK2DEEP (Roswell New Mexico) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Anti-war statement
great sci/fi, and thought provoking.
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