Adapted from Kurt Vonnegut’s novel of the same name, Slaughterhouse Five presents the life of Billy Pilgrim, a man ‘unstuck in time’, including, crucially, a period as a prisoner of war in Dresden during World War II. Challenging and stretching the conventions of Hollywood filmmaking, the film deftly shifts between different moments in Billy’s life creating a kaleidoscope of experiences.
With its extensive use of cuts between space and time, of all the films in this season, Slaughterhouse Five perhaps best exemplifies the imperious art of editor Dede Allen.