Rating: 
Summary: Great movie and great DVD.
Review: I remember this movie from when I was younger and really enjoyed watching it again. A younger Bruce Davison shows how great a actor he was, and STILL is, and as a sci-fi fan I really liked the turtle-like aliens. The extra in which Bill Moyers interviews with Ursula K. Le Guin is a perfect companion to the well crafted movie.
This movie shows what you can do with very little money and a GREAT story.
Rating:
Summary: The legendary PBS Sci Fi classic available at last on DVD
Review: The 1980 PBS version of "The Lathe of Heaven" was the Science Fiction equivalent of the Marx Brother's "Animal Crackers" or John Frankenheimer's "The Manchurian Candidate"; a classic that was unavailable to the masses for some stupid legal reason (in this case the unauthorized used of the Beatles' song "A Little Help From My Friends"-the film now has a cover version of the song). Now the adaptation of Ursula K. Le Guin's celebrated novel about a man whose dreams become reality is available in a DVD edition that offers a 20-minute interview with the author by Bill Moyers. But the chief attraction remains the film and its compelling parable, which explains why bad bootleg copies were prized for so long. The story is about George Orr (Bruce Davison), a man living in Portland, Oregon in the year 2002 who dreams become reality. George tries to control his dreams by taking drugs. Dr. William Haber (Kevin Conway), a psychiatrist assigned to cure George's neurosis after he accidentally overdoses, learns his gift is real and uses hypnosis to try and have his patient change reality to make the world a better place. However, Dr. Haber learns that the best laid plans of mice and psychiatrists often go astray. The lesson is to live in harmony with your existence because an attempt to force change inevitably makes things worse. Even the desire to solve the race problem or to bring about world peace can go astray. George has the power but it is Dr. Haber who takes the responsibility who trying to save humanity from a bleak future. You can compare "The Lathe of Heaven" with Stephen King's "The Dead Zone," where the power and the responsibility both lie with John Smith. Instead of focusing more on the ethics of the question of intervening in the course of human events, Le Guin is more interested in the pragmatics of using the power involved for the greater good. In that regard "The Lathe of Heaven" is a futuristic version of all those stories were a human is granted a wish by a genii (or devil) who invariable provides a twist worth of "The Twilight Zone." But as Haber goes from having George change the picture on his wall to having the sun always shine to running the Haber Institute, you are reminded more of the story of the Fisherman's wife who kept demanding that the magic fish caught by her husband keep making her someone more and more powerful until she demands to be god. The special effects are what you would expect from a PBS production in 1980 (the budget was $250,000), but there are not crucial to the telling of the tale, so you can take their shortcomings into account. This is one of the more cerebral films in the history of Science Fiction and what compels us to think is the story and not the special effects. This production "The Lathe of Heaven" was directed by Fred Barzyk and David E. Lonton from the screenplay by Robert E. Swayhill and Diane English (yes, the one who created "Murphy Brown"; this was her first television script). They can remake "The Lathe of Heaven," obviously, but they cannot recapture the intrinsic elements that made this low-budget work a Science Fiction classic.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic accomplishment on a PBS budget!
Review: When PBS made this film, they selected possibly one of the most difficult LeGuin novels to adapt. Space aliens, U.F.O.'s, mind journeys, apocalyptic journeys, and turtles. However, the production is top notch, though they lack of budget is noticable in scenes. The story comes across from the book very neatly, and is a fascinating watch. Mainly, because you're rivetted by the story, and not by the FX (or lack thereof). This film was made again in 2002, a very stilted rendition that had big name actors, more budget, and less interest.
The story: Ben Orr's dreams things that mystically translate into reality. His psychiatrist attempts to direct Orr's dreams, but fails over and over on continually grander scales (likely through Orr's subconscious protests to being used in this manner). There is more, but it wouldn't be right to ruin the fun for people who are unfamiliar with the story.
This movie could be considered an American foreign film. Right in their with overseas cinematic greats such as SOLARIS and ALPHAVILLE, it is a film for those who like to ponder thoughts deeper than achieved in high-budget blockbuster drivel (THE MATRIX excluded). You won't see fantastic special effects, though you will see adequate effects and fantastic storytelling. The DVD includes a great interview with the underappreciated author Ursula K. LeGuin, though not many other features; scene selection and interactive menu. So it doesn't have tons of features-so what? This DVD is well worth it simply to own this movie, if you want to see great DVD features, buy MONSTERS, INC. If you want a great, thoughtful sci-fi film, this movie is for you.
Rating:
Summary: A Great And Poignant Sci-Fi Masterpiece
Review: 1980: Ursula Leguin's novel "The Lathe Of Heaven" was a deeply symbolic, metaphysical work of science fiction that even Ursula Leguin herself believed was quite impossible to make into a film. But, nevertheless, the film was made and to great acclaim. In 1980, it was the first film that appeared on PBS. The Lathe Of Heaven stars Bruce Davison as George Orr and Kevin Conway as Dr. Haber. Following a lot of the novel's premise, with subtle, strange music and powerful imagery, this film is stunning. It is, in my personal opinion, as well as another reviewer, a work of science fiction at paar, if not higher, than "2001: A Space Odyssey". Finally, this masterpiece is on DVD, containing the original film and an interview between journalist Bill Moyers and Ursual Leguin herself. Bill Moyers had interviewed Joseph Campbell, whose "Power Of Myth" series can compliment this film as well. George Orr (Bruce Davison, resembling, as one viewer said Mark Hammill who played Luke Skywalker) is a troubled young man. He discovers that his dreams have the unsettling power of changing reality and the space time continuum, altering the future. When George Orr seeks help from a dream analyst and psychiatrist, Dr. Haber. When Dr. Haber uncovers George's secret, he begins to harness its power. Session after session with George Orr, he attempts to make the world a better place - he tries to eliminate disease and world hunger, racism and tries to bring about world peace. But each alteration produces a negative effect and a dark consequence. The world is destroyed and aliens dominate humanity. Dr. Haber becomes consumed with his thrist for power, corrupted by his obscession to play and become God. But the aliens sternly warn that such people are destroyed by the lathe of heaven. George Orr manages to escape and Dr. Haber's demise is the crippling of his powers and old age. Bill Moyers and Ursula Leguin speak of the powerful imagery in the film and its striking and frightening use of collective unconscious. Ursula Leguin is a gifted writer, drawing inspiration from mystic sources, a New Age philosopher with the deepest perception of human nature. I strongly suggest that viewers interested in poignant and meaningful science fiction (a la 2001: Space Odyssey) see this film. It is also a great film companion to the novel. For college or high school level students, this film should be very educational as well as entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Dismal DVD
Review: I agree with the many reviewers that this is a fantastic, wonderful film. Unfortunately, the quality of this DVD is so horrible that it is difficult to watch (That's why I gave so few stars).But there is hope. Tonight I saw a broadcast of the film on PBS, and it looked pretty good. It was a pledge drive, and the station was offering a new remastered version for membership contributions. I look forward to seeing that version hit the market, then I can give it five stars, as the content of this film richly deserves.
Rating: 
Summary: A Science Fiction Classic
Review: 1980's The Lathe of Heaven was the first in what was supposed to be a series of television adaptations of major science fiction works of literature by PBS. Unfortunately that project was abandoned because this was the only movie in that series and it represented an excellent start. The television movie is very faithful to the book, containing only a few variations and omissions from the source material, primarily to make it fit within the two hour framework. Bruce Davison is the perfect George Orr. He plays George as a simple man who only wants a normal life. He does not want the awesome responsibility of his "effective" dreaming and he hopes that Dr. Haber will be able to cure him. However, he becomes aware of what Haber is doing and George knows that he must get out from under his control. Kevin Conway does an equally good job of portraying Dr. Haber. The psychiatrist is a powerful man in contrast to the somewhat timid George Orr. He is not an evil man, but he does become blinded by his own good intentions. This becomes more apparent as Haber delves deeper and deeper into his attempts to control George's Dreams. Margaret Avery, as the social worker Heather Lelache, also does a good job of sharing the stage with the two main characters and does not get swallowed up by their more dominating performances. Since the movie was made in 1980, it is somewhat dated. Dr. Haber's super computer which occupies an entire office seems like an antique in comparison to today's stealth machines. Also, the extremely limited budget results in some incredibly cheesy special effects at times, especially the alien invasion scene. The aliens themselves are fairly well done, though. They come very close to resembling Le Guin's descriptions of them in the book. Overall, the pros far outweigh the cons, and this television adaptation of The Lathe of Heaven ranks among the finer science fiction movies.
Rating:
Summary: The PBS version - without the pledge drives
Review: Those who insist on using their powers of reason to understand what cannot be understood will face the lathe of heaven. In this 1980 flick shot for PBS, the "lathe" is the realm of "reactive dreams" - dreams that change reality. In the first scene of "Lathe", luckless George Orr stumbles through the debris of Seattle in the aftermath of WWIII. He then finds himself in his own bed - Seattle looking positively dreary, but otherwise intact. It was all a dream...or was it. George begins knowing of his power to alter reality with his dreams, but it's not a realization he feels happy about. Referred by a social worker, Heather Lelache, George finds himself in the offices of Dr. Haber, a psychiatrist who comes to realize George's power, and learns how to manipulate it using post-hypnotic suggestion ("Antwerp"). The results, promising at first, turn disastrous - plans to dream away hunger and war instead result in a global plague and interstellar invasion. Haber, unable to resist the call of the lathe of heaven, is only determined to gain complete control of Orr's power for the betterment of man. This is the version you should have - the classic that looks pristine over 20 years later. Consider the performances of Harrison as Orr: though under Haber's control, he proves to be his own man (especially in a pivotal scene as Haber's office is to be invaded by aliens. But the story belongs to Kevin Conway as Haber, who develops into one of sci-fi's more menacing villains. The ultimate archetype of science gone too far, Haber's faustian progression is smooth, plausible and downright scary. Though the film stands on its own, I'm mostly drawn to the film's dated look, grainy film, electronic score and a vision of the future that's pure 1980, in which the future is nothing more than clean skyscrapers of steel and glass. This version of "Lathe" is perfect being naivety and knowing at the same time. And, yes, though you've probably heard it from just about every other reviewer here, this version beats the 2002 A&E version.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth Checking Out...From The Library
Review: Ursula K. Le Guin is one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time, and her book "Lathe of Heaven" ranks as one of her greatest achievements. Unfortunately, the TV movie "Lathe of Heaven" not only features cheesy effects and music (even for the time this film was made, which really wasn't so long ago), but also terrible direction and acting. It is, however, worth checking out from your local library, especially for the fascinating interview with Le Guin included on the DVD.
Rating:
Summary: If you liked "What Dreams May Come"....
Review: If you liked "What Dreams May Come", I think you'll love this film, too. It is really deeply spiritual.
Simply done, crisp, moving, and wonderfully refreshing.
If you have ever been touched by your dreams, you'll be deeply touched by this film.
Definitely a must see film.
BTW, I saw it just before watching "Left Behind II" which I highly recommend you purchase/see, too!
If you liked "Matrix" but thought it too violent, you'll enjoy seeing the same issues of "reality" as done in this movie.
For the truth behind all four of all these movies is "ye are gods".
Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: Amazing film. Haunting. Eerie. A young man is sentenced to therapy after attempting suicide. He had overdosed on drugs in a desperate attempt to rid himself of his dreams. He is sent to an Oneiro - Neurologist (a Dream - Neurologist) who, somehow, is also a psychoanalyst. The doctor is in the process of creating a dream enhancing machine, and along comes the perfect subject - a person who has dreams of such intensity that they can change the very fabric of reality, or so, at least, the patient believes... All this could easily have been ludicrous beyond belief - sentenced to therapy because of a suicide attempt?! A "Dream Neurologist"?! A Dream Neurologist who is also a psychoanalyst?! It works perfectly though, in it's dream logic, as it sets the perfect tone for the nightmarish scenario that is to follow. What follows effectively undermines your perception of reality.... As for the quality of the DVD - it is absolutely awful, though for once, this is not the producers fault. They explain at the start of the film that the original film was lost and it was remastered from a videotape. Perhaps a word of caution - this is really scary stuff...
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