Lathe of Heaven
by Philip Haas
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DVD details
Actor: David Strathairn, James Caan, Lisa Bonet, Lukas Haas, Sheila McCarthyDirector: Philip Haas
Brand: A and E Home Video
Producer: Allen Sabinson
Producer: Bruce Davison
Producer: Craig Baumgarten
Producer: David Craig
Producer: Mark Winemaker
Writer: Alan Sharp
Writer: Ursula K. Le Guin
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Color, DVD, Letterboxed, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 91 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-10-29
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: A&E Home Video
DVD Reviews of Lathe of Heaven
DVD Review: George Orr, please dream another remake!
Summary: 1 Stars
_
Point blank: a BIG disappointment. It makes the original TV movie look phenomenal. Here's why:
In 1980, PBS funded its first made for TV movie: The Lathe of Heaven. It probably didn't have a big budget, but the acting was very good and the production quite thoughtful. They really did a lot with little. Sure, the special effects are primitive compared with today's computer generated effects, but they did work. Ursula Le Guin came up with a great story that deserves a decent movie incarnation. But somehow, the folks at A&E really blew it with this updated version.
The acting is shockingly below average. James Caan, an award winning actor, seems to have done this piece as a half-hearted favor to Haas and didn't put his talent into it. Most of the time you expect him to fall asleep, given his mumbly, low monotone conversations. Lukas Haas unjustly portrays Orr as a severely weak pushover, with no spark of life in him. He is "humdrum" about everything (a Haas trademark?), and you find it difficult to identify with him unless your life is confined to a cardboard box. Lisa Bonet also has this "sedated" personna in Heather, but that might be because she realizes that her character is completely unbelievable and she has so little to work with.
The script is too far off the mark. The writer completely missed the driving points of the Lathe of Heaven novel by Ursula K. LeGuin. The whole concept of "The Greatest Good for the Greatest Number", striving to play God for humanity, is completely lost. Only George Orr remains true to the agenda portrayed in the book, to stop himself from having dreams that change reality. Dr. Haber tries to use George for his own benefit, but in this remake he shows no lofty goals for humanity, trying to "make the world RIGHT". Heather Lelache just drifts through the story aimlessly, as if on drugs.
There is a painful lack of special effects too. You see some nice examples of special effects scattered about, but in places where they are sorely needed there is nothing. Also, key aspects of the book are completely ignored, perhaps because they didn't want to risk trying to imitate the effects (5 billion people die from the plague, aliens attack, etc.).
In short, there is no good reason to see this movie, UNLESS you are a Lathe of Heaven fanatic and want to see this for comparison purposes. Even still, it is PAINFUL to watch. The only benefit is that it makes you appreciate that charming low budget original TV movie--The Lathe of Heaven is a great story and I'm so glad it is finally available on DVD (it was not available on any commercial media for many, many years--you just had to be fortunate enough to have taped the original PBS broadcast or obtained a copy of that from a friend). Here's the link: The Lathe of Heaven
If you search the Internet for "James Caan" and "Lathe of Heaven", you'll find a few reviews posted on various websites, most of which are kind to the film with no real basis, so don't be quick to believe them. I'm really disappointed with James Caan letting such drivel become published.
Description of Lathe of Heaven
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