Rating: 
Summary: Run, don't walk, away from this turkey!
Review: James Caan grimacing and flinching throughout this movie, while Lisa Bonet, still tattooed, does her best impersonation of Halle Berry.
P..and may I add..U!
Do yourself a favor and buy the book, read it, and get the fantastic,( though low in production values), PBS production.
You won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Why bother to use the name when the story ain't the same?
Review: Ms. LeGuin had the unique opportunity to have her novel become the first independent production by PBS. They worked on a shoe-string budget and shot the film in a few days - with unknowns as actors and something that this version of the film lacks: adherence to the book. I'd give this a NEGATIVE five stars if it were possible because the director Philip Haas has wasted the talents of Lukas Haas, Lisa Bonet and David Strathairn as well as a budget that is clearly far, far in excess of the original film. (The cost of shooting the opulent wood paneled offices with inlay work from heaven -- obviously from some Swiss Bank -- must have exceeded the entire budget of the 1980 movie! ) This is more than a waste of time and money it is insipid! If only the producer and director had expended the money and effort on another of Ms. LeGuin's works -- and stayed on story -- this could have been a rave review. Whatever made these fools attempt a remake of an excellent movie adaptation of an excellent novel is beyond me - and beyond any reason to venture near this DVD. Watch the original and then send the director of this abomination out to do the same so he can find out how the job is done right!
Rating:
Summary: Who greenlighted this turkey?
Review: Note to people involved with the 2002 version of "Lathe of Heaven": Did you even read the book? Did you get bored after the first 50 pages and quit? I love the 1980 version, but it isn't flawless. It's low budget, and the nuclear war stuff they threw in is pretty confusing. The climax of the book can only truly be transposed to film through very, very, expensive special effects. The 1980 film does an admirable job, but I'd love to see Spielberg or Lucas take a crack at the special effects. As great as the 1980 version is, I feel that the definitive movie adaptation of the book has yet to be made. The 2002 version is an embarrasment. They did a very good job with the costumes and the hair. James Caan does a good job, with what little he has to work with. Lisa Bonet and the guy who plays George Orr are ok. But the teleplay - what the hell were they thinking? Just how big was the committee that cooked this one up - 10, 20 people? If your budget can't handle the aliens, don't even bother. I think they blew the budget on costumes - the "futuristic" car George drives in the end is just a VW Beatle with some plastic over it. I think I figured it out. The original screenplay had aliens, but half-way through the film they ran out of money, so they rewrote the ending, filmed a jellyfish for 20 minutes, and called it a movie. I defy anyone to come up with a better explanation.
Rating:
Summary: Horrible...
Review: One of the worst remakes I've ever seen. The original PBS movie is the one you want to see - a true classic. This version ignored most of the important plot lines of the original book, and left me angry and frustrated. I watched the original movie (made in 1980 for a fraction of the cost) just to wash the bad taste out of my mouth. Please - don't waste your time or money on this travesty.
Rating: 
Summary: and again orr
Review: since I've read the book once more,read it,this isn't really bad.The actors,Caan especially,are.up to the work.The actor playing Orr was flat.Bonet was very good and beautiful(don't hold it against her),but was "unequally yoked"with the Orr presented on this version of the story.I would recommend it,but suggest reading the book,one of the best sf novels of all time.You might enjoy the PBS original more if you've seen this first,like me.The first is far superior.My biggest complaint is that,in tackling a great story,the film settled for too little orr.
Rating:
Summary: Buy the Original Movie from Amazon...
Review: The 1980 film was great. I was extremely dissapointed with the A&E movie. It was a vague dream of the book or the original movie. It did motivate me to buy the original movie on DVD. The only difference with the original is, "A Little Help From My Friends", isn't performed by the Beatles. (Probably copyright reasons) Buy the original, you won't be dissappointed. A&E, what were you thinking???
Rating:
Summary: Pathetically poor
Review: The 1980 PBS version is superior and faithful to LeGuin's book. This later edition is successful only in wasting the talents of its cast and the time of its audience while the concept behind the story is totally ignored. If this system allowed a negative rating instead of requiring a rating in the range of 1 to 5 stars, this should earn a -5.
Rating:
Summary: Vile
Review: The 1980 version is lovely--low budget but true to the book and Le Guin's vision. This clunker is hardly recognizable as the same story. Le Guin says she had nothing to do with it, and it shows. Don't waste your time on this version; get the 1980 instead.
Rating: 
Summary: Le Guin meets the Twilight Zone
Review: The Arts and Entertainment channel decided to revisit Ursula K. Le Guin's science fiction classic, and their version premiered on television in 2002. The tendency is to want to compare this movie to the 1980 version or to the book, which ultimately casts it in an unfavorable light. Judged on its own merits, however, it is actually not too bad. This movie still contains the basic premise of George Orr attempting to find a cure for his dreams that effective reality. The first half of the A&E version actually follows the book fairly closely. However, this movie almost completely dispenses with Dr. Haber's attempts to use George's power to bring the greatest good to the greatest number. In fact, Dr. Haber manipulates Georges power mostly for his own gain. Several aspects of the book and the original movie are completely left out, such as the alien invasion and their subsequent interaction with the characters. Instead, this movie focuses more on the relationship with George Orr and Heather Lelache. George continues to dream new realities in which he meets Heather again and again in a seemingly never-ending unfulfilled romance. In this respect A&E's version of The Lathe of Heaven is like an extended episode of The Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits. And in this respect, it is a decent, though not spectacular, movie. It disappoints, however, when compared to the original movie and the book. Though James Caan does a good Dr. Haber, Lukas Haas adds nothing to the character of George Orr, and Lisa Bonet, as Heather Lelache, seems to fade into the background in most scenes. In addition, much of the original story's observation on the use and misuse of power is lost in what is essentially a quaint love story.
Rating:
Summary: Cheap made for television pilot
Review: The basic story is of a person who has effective dreams. This means tat if he dreams something it can become reality. However the results of trying to direct the dream can be negative. Someone assigned to help him ends up using him. This animal will not get off the ground. They are taking a premise from the book and using it to launch some cheep time trip program similar to "Time Tunnel" or "Quantum Leap." It is not enough to insult people that are familiar with the book, but to think that viewers would not recognize the plot out of old sci-fi movies is insulting to the general public.
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