Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
A&E's Loathe of Heaven, September 29, 2002
This is the amongst the worst adaptations I've ever witnessed. Watching it was a complete waste of time. Any resemblance to either Ursula K. LeGuin's novel or the superb first movie from PBS is coincidental.
The writer ignores the philosophical and religious undertones of the novel -- captured beautifully in the earlier PBS production -- and prefers a monolithic, one-dimensional telling of a completely different story with entirely different characters, motives and consequences.
The acting, if you can call it that, is likewise monolithic and uninspired. Particularly disappointing were Cann and Haas, the main protagonists. Lisa Bonet attempts to rescue some scenes, but the wooden acting by Haas spoils her efforts. The one inspired element of the production, the scenes with David Strathairn's Mannie, is left useless by a lack of reason or context for the character's apparent knowledge. It doesn't help that in the original book and movie this role was filled by one of the space aliens, dreamed up by main character. In the A&E production Mannie is left hanging on a vine unattached to any other of the story's branches. The whole effect is one of confusion instead of focussing on the thought provoking ideas presented in both the original novel and PBS's far superior production.
My advice is to ignore this turkey. Buy the book and read it, or if you must view a video production, go with the inspired 1980
PBS production. This A&E production is shallow, uninspired and totally without merit when compared with the other sources.
Reading the other reviews I get the feeling that those praising
this turkey haven't read the book or seen the 1980 PBS version.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Le Guin meets the Twilight Zone, February 5, 2003
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.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Very disappointing, September 25, 2002
Comprehensively defanged version of the Ursula LeGuin Scifi classic (her 2nd best novel after the (as yet unfilmed) Left Hand of Darkness), this DVD omits so many plot elements it is barely possible to follow it without having read the book, and if you've read the book, you won't want to.Extra star because it *looks* good, especially the hot young leads, and James Caan and David Strathairn are always watchable. But the up to date special effects treatment of the aliens that many fans were waiting for is absent - in fact, there are no aliens! Plenty else missing, in particular a sense of pacing and excitement somehow got left on the cutting floor. Correctly described by pipingbear as the "Latte of Heaven", sweet as far as it goes, but insubstantial, unsatisfying - and produced by a vast evil conglomerate!
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