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Slaughterhouse Five
First Published: 1969
275 pages
 About the Book
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About the Classic 1972 Film
At different times, Kurt Vonnegut himself has called the 1972 film of Slaughterhouse Five an artistic success and a flawless translation of his novel, and it thus far seems to be the only film adaptation of his novels and stories that he likes. Directed by George Roy Hill, from a remarkably cogent screenplay by Stephen Geller, the film manages to follow fairly closely the crazy-quilt structure of Vonnegut´s novel, with some streamlining of incidents, details and characters. The literate and thoughtful Hill was then near the height of his career, this film coming between Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), for which he was an Oscar nominee for best director, and the 1973 blockbuster The Sting, for which he won the Oscar.
American film was in the midst of a brief but memorable golden age in 1972, when individual vision and idiosyncratic style were the qualities that engaged audiences. It was the perfect moment for an honest film of Slaughterhouse Five -- the novel was already a cult classic -- and Hill was the ideal director. Though his work did not announce itself with the signature style of many of his contemporaries -- Coppola, Bogdanovich, Altman, Kubrick -- Hill made films with a quiet, elegant strength, intelligence and sense of fun, and he subtly brought coherence and a sense of continuity to the saga of Billy Pilgrim in Slaughterhouse Five.
The American actor Michael Sacks (who would later appear in Steven Spielberg´s first feature The Sugarland Express) is unforgettable as Billy Pilgrim, a haunting and perfectly judged performance that brings Vonnegut´s hero convincingly to life. The cast includes Ron Leibman, Eugene Roche and Valerie Perrine (as Montana Wildhack). The legendary pianist Glenn Gould contributed original music as well as keyboard selections by J.S. Bach -- a surprising and poignant touch. The film was shot by the great Czech cinematographer Miroslav Ondricek (Amadeus) -- with Prague standing in for Dresden -- and edited by Dede Allen (Bonnie and Clyde, Dog Day Afternoon, Reds).
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