[1] Unlike the 1980 adaptation, this film discards a significant portion of the plot, some minor characters, and much of the philosophical underpinnings of the book.

The film takes place in a futuristic society, where a young man named George Orr overdoses using someone else's pharmacy card.

After he is caught overdosing, his attorney Heather Lelache sends him to a psychologist as a punishment.

The psychologist, William Haber, uses a machine called an "augmentor" to delve deep into Orr's mind.

When Orr wakes up from his hypnosis-induced dream, an image of Lady Godiva on a horse is now painted on the wall in the office.