...after Harlan Ellison was born, simple as that, and the world will be a lesser place once he is gone. Fortunately, though, his writing will survive, and that's good enough for me. In my pantheon of cultural heroes, he remains at or near the top, depending on my situation at the time; he has spoken to me and for me throughout my lifetime of reading more than any other author, almost as though he were a second father, or perhaps an older brother to be worshiped from afar. I will weep at his passing.No one who is at all literate can remain unaware of Ellison's work, and very likely unaware of his reputation. Mercurial, iconoclastic, savage, unrelenting; a thesaurus can barely contain all the descriptives that apply to Ellison and his voluminous output. My sole encounter with him occurred decades ago, when I was lucky enough to attend one of his speaking gigs at a nearby college. I brought several spoken word LPs he had recorded, prizes of my collection, in hopes of an autograph or two, and when I made it to the front of the line and was face to face with the man himself, all I could think to say beyond the obvious sycophantic pleasantries was that I had read everything he'd ever written. He looked at me askance, and said something along the lines of, "Really?" and then signed my LPs. I fled, chastened, grateful that I had been spared further ignominy. My love for the man and his work now knows no bounds."Dreams with Sharp Teeth" is a must-see for all Ellison devotees, and neophytes as well.

Harlan Ellison is hands down one of the most fascinating personalities of literature, and this documentary does him justice by just letting him talk about god (or his/her nonexistence) and the world. A lot of these monologues are rants, but they are so fascinating to listen to (and wildly entertaining) that you will enjoy this documentary greatly. I cannot judge how Ellison comes across in this film if you don't know his writing already, but one thing is sure: he doesn't care if you like him or not. In this age of political correctness, of hypocrisy, of dancing around important subjects out of fear of having any kind of stance or position Ellison is somebody you should listen to. Behind his facade of the angry old man spouting vulgarities is probably the most moral and ethical person you could ever meet on this planet. His views on subjects like intellectual property are enlightening and important, his critique of our superficial and anti-intellectual society is spot-on. As a film the parts that come across the weakest are some computer visualizations of Ellison's prose, but it's great to hear the man himself reciting excerpts from his stories. Neil Gaiman talks very sympathetically about his friend, as is Robin Williams (who comes across as endearingly vulnerable and warm-hearted, especially in hindsight of his suicide). Dan Simmons acknowledges that he owes his career to Ellison, as do many others. All in all a great an entertaining documentary that every budding writer should watch to learn one important lesson from the master himself: writing (and art) is not for sissies. You have to take a stance, and you should not be afraid of getting s***thrown at you. Ellison has gone through all that, and has remained true to himself all the way.

I've only read a couple of Ellison's stories ("'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman", and "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream", maybe one or two more that I don't remember). I wasn't interested in this documentary because I'm a fan. I have a family connection to an editor of sci-fi work from the period where Ellison was living in and publishing out of New York, and I was curious about whether that connection was mentioned at all. That is the sole, presumptuous, and completely narcissistic reason I watched this film.It was, regardless of the lack of mention of my niece's grandfather, thoroughly entertaining and informative. Ellison has a knack for storytelling even when he's not telling stories. It's worth watching... for those two or three people wondering whether to watch it or not.

If you are, or ever have been, an avid reader of fiction, especially the SF/Fantasy genre, you can probably recall at least one author whose work was so vivid, potent and visceral, it changed the way you looked at everything - not just reading, or writing, but your entire world view - for the rest of your life. I recall that very moment well: I wasn't even into my teens yet, when I picked up a copy of DEATHBIRD STORIES and read "The Whimper Of Whipped Dogs." Whatever sense of true naiveté I had gasped its last breath that day, when I read the last page of that story.Not necessarily a bad thing, either. So when I heard about this documentary all these years later, I had to know if the man responsible for that story and that book, was every bit as cynical, angry, vitriolic, nihilistic and insanely brilliant as the reputation that preceded him. I can now verify: he is that and so, so much more.Perhaps it's most telling that at the opening of DREAMS WITH SHARP TEETH, we are introduced to Harlan through the eyes, perception and quicksilver wit of one of the author's closest, long-time friends: Robin Williams. Harlan is at his calmest (if the word can be applied to him) and most amiable when he is in the company of like-minded, intelligent and especially famous people, many of whom chime in here to help tell his story: Neil Gaiman, Ron Moore, Dan Simmons and his own fifth wife, Susan among them (and she gets not nearly enough screen time, more's the pity.)Through rare home movie footage, recited excerpts of his work, various rants, tirades, anecdotes and reveries, we get a sense of who the man is apart from the author, and it's certainly a complex, perplexing, funny and often times very sad picture. For long-time fans, it will be a validation of everything you've heard over these many years since he began writing pulp paperbacks under a pseudonym barely out of his teens. If you're not a fan or haven't read a single thing by him, I would suggest you pick up an anthology like DANGEROUS VISIONS or even just a story or two if possible. That way, he'll look a lot less like just one more short, angry old man screaming "YOU KIDS GET THE F*** OFF MY LAWN!!!"