The Red Tent

I have been waiting to get a copy of "The Red Tent" since it was shown on Lifetime. Usually when I read a book I find myself so disappointed in the film version of the story. Not with this production. The Red Tent is a novel by Anita Diamant, published in 1997, I read it for the first time in 2013 and fell in love with the characters. The book is more detailed than the film.The book and movie are based on the Old Testament. The story of the Red Tent is told through the eyes of Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob. If you are looking for a Biblical accurate portrayal of Genesis 34: 1-31, don't count on it to be found in this film. Read the Scripture first of the account and then with the Biblical facts in mind sit back and enjoy the story woven by Anita Diamant. Diamant takes pieces of historical information from the time period and intermingles different traditions of Judaism and pagan beliefs of the time. The intermingling of the story of Jacob and his descendants plays an important role in the story but it is the women of the Tribe who are in the forefront. The acting is great, sets are realistic and the costumes are perfectly executed.I am a huge fan of Minnie Driver and was excited to see that she was in the film. Driver plays Leah and Rebbecca Ferguson portraits her daughter, Dinah. I was thrilled and pleasantly surprised to see Debra Winger as Rebecca. She played the Matriarch of the family to the hilt! The romance between Dinah and her second husband, Benia, played by Darwin Shaw, is a beautiful and really resonances as a true romance.Remember the film premiered on Lifetime, whose focus audience is women. With that said, Happy Grandpa watched it with me and he enjoyed it as well as I did.

Amazing movie. It is worth every penny.

Many do not even know who Dinah is biblically speaking mentioned so very little in the Bible but the most interesting special woman . Although a movie definitely worth the purchase!!!

While not entirely "factual" (but then again, how do we really know?), this movie is very well done. Top rated actors did an excellent job portraying the Biblical characters the likes of Jacob, Dinah, Joseph, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah. There were some fairly gory parts and also some sexually charged scenes so I wouldn't recommend it for children under 14 but it truly is a well done film.

A REVIEW WITH BOTH A SCRIPTURAL AND SECULAR PERSPECTIVE****PLEASE NOTE: As you may see from very different reviews, there are several perspectives with which to view this work. Please accept this attempt to describe the different viewpoints and help viewers decide if it's for them. For those drawn to the movie with a scriptural interest, there are significant changes that will cast some characters in an unflattering light that did not occur in the bible narrative. Some other events are reasonably accurate to the scriptural account, but feel a little barbed. However, if you can, see also that the movie still projects a strong message of forgiveness and of female strength, honoring motherhood. For those who love this movie yet see others are upset, please also understand that it borrows from a belief system and changes it in ways that can definitely feel uncomfortable. For those who will hate it, I am trying to describe up front what you may find offensive. It's ok to write one's own review, for or against, without being offended by other reviews that may differ on either side.INTRO: This movie aired on Lifetime TV and is an adaptation of the novel by Anita Diamant. Though it had the modest resources one would expect for Made-For-TV, it does quite well and has readily recognizable stars. I would even say it succeeds in a somewhat epic feel despite the small screen production. It is only scriptural in that it borrows the structure and names provided by the brothers who will eventually become the fathers of the tribes of Israel, and their sister Dina who barely has a mention in the bible. It is highly symbolic through choosing Dina, almost a footnote compared to her family, and making her the focus of the story. It is also highly symbolic with the "red tent" where the women go to adhere to their monthly isolation during menstruation and child birth. It is also their haven. I am probably losing some guys already, but there is much, much more to it than that.THE STORY (no spoilers): The story is primarily about Dina so of course it is fictionalized so they can flesh out her character and create the mythology of her life to fit the novelist's own tale (there is no life history of Dina in the bible, just a few mentions). However, we begin by going back to Jacob and his love for Rachel, showing how Jacob secured Lea and Rachel (and a few others) as wives. This helps in part to establish the symbolism and female culture surrounding the author's "Red Tent". There are changes in the marriage motivations here that could bother some scriptorians. We move forward quickly and establish the family of Jacob with his many sons who will become the tribes of Israel. It begins to focus on Dina (Lea's daughter) and how she inherits her aunt Rachel's aptitude for being a midwife. Dina hears the tales of how Rachel fell immediately for Jacob on their meeting at the well, and longs for her own true love. Fate will bring her into the orbit of Shalem, the handsome son of a king in the city state of Shechem. They are instantly drawn to eachother. Those who know the scriptural account (again there are departures) are aware of the misfortunes that soon befall. Tragic events will send Dina on a path she could not imagine and leave her struggling to find her own path. The circular nature of life and the need for forgiveness are very strong themes of the story.OTHER THOUGHTS: I appreciated the positive messages embodied in the story and was moved at times. Of course it can be melodramatic and it is certainly made for TV fair. However, the acting was actually pretty good for it's genre and limited resources. I think the actors were very passionate about this film. To be fair, there are times where the changes from scripture felt a little harsh despite the positive tone. For those who will be uncomfortable with that, I think it's understandable and the film probably won't suit your tastes. Despite liking the film, I did think there were some changes to the scriptural story that weren't necessary to advance the author's intent. If you are still interested in the very positive aspects of the message, I still think it's worthy. Strictly for my own purposes, I chose to view the film as a secular story with an inspirational message. I suggest a rental for anyone curious.

A friend recommended this to me, and I am very glad she did, I loved the movie

This movie is fantastic and why it did not do better at the Box Offices in general is beyond my comprehension. I understand that that the stout Christian and Hebrew does not like the Bible to used in any other manner than worship and self reflection. That's their choice, but it is nice to know what might of have happened to the women that are scarcely mentioned in the Bible once with the exceptions of Ruth and Esther. If it was not for the women you pious jackasses, there would be no MEN! Great movie, really Prodigious!

It is one thing to read the words of the Bible but to see the living version of the story makes more of a impact. I would say that this is definitely a woman's movie but also appealing to anyone studying the Old Testament. Great to watch with your daughter, sister or girl-friends! Very well acted and still staying true to the Old testament story.

my daughter like it

Film extraordinaire et je pèse mes mots !!!Nous voilà projeté dans l'ancien testament avec l'histoire de cette petite fille qui vit une enfance heureuse à l'intérieur de cette tente rouge où les femmes de sa tribu se réunissent et partagent les traditions et les troubles de la femme de cette époque. L'histoire de sa vie est époustouflante !!!!Les acteurs sont poignants de vérité , l actrice Rebecca Fergusson est remarquable ,les paysages, les lieux sont magnifiques .Si vous aimez cette époque je vous recommande vraiment !! Ce film est une fresque.

Product just as described

When I first started reading The Red Tent, I was really excited. I thought, "Boy, I'm going to love this -- the setting, the idea of a small, hillside community, the descriptions of a time I've read about since childhood, and a female narrator filling in the gaps to change herself from a minor character in the Bible to an intriguing observer sharing treasured tidbits of information-- I was drawn in. But before long, I found the actions in the story rather crude, and the talk too much about sex, also in rather vivid descriptions. However, the narration got past that, and became a more animated story about Dinah's learning to understand all the complicated relationships in a large, melded community, the skills she learned as a woman in ancient times, their traditions, and where she fit as one of the youngest children and one of few females in this clan gathering. The red tent was a place of rest from the daily grind and the company of men, as the women experienced their monthly menstruation in sync at the time of the full month, and, in that intimate seclusion, shared their memories, hopes, and dreads. I was hooked.Dinah, only daughter of Jacob (who has about three lines in the book of Genesis), becomes an enchantress weaving a spell over her listeners as she relates the stories of her four mothers (sisters, the daughters of Laban), her childhood running through the dusty hills with her brother, Joseph (milk-brother because his mother was unable to suckle him), the natures of her much older brothers, and the hatred and contempt felt by her mothers for her grandfather, Laban, who cheated the son-in-law who had worked for him without pay, built up his herds, expanded his wealth, and trained his shepherd dogs without ever receiving recognition or owning any part of the fruit of his labours, and who was, above all, a cruel and lazy lout. The Old Testament facts all fit the story but there is a rich and well-researched expansion here that provides a fuller picture and greater understanding of the times. It is a story of grindstones and looms, baking and the making of beer, the practice of midwifery, and the worshipping of their own gods despite Jacob's clinging to his "one God", the God of Abraham. It is a story of adventure and misadventure, romance and romance thwarted, grievances and reconciliations.Dinah retells the story of Isaac, and that of Jacob and Esau, of the old age of her grand-mother, Rebecca, who became like a seer known to people far and wide, the caravans and traders that become part of their history, and a completely different take on her own defilement, and how she ended up cursing her family and escaping their encampment to begin a new life in Egypt.I found this a most credible telling and an intriguing, and compelling one at that. I was a bit surprised by the author's note at the end of the book where Diamant thanks people who seem to have opened doors for her to access research materials but never actually credits the ideas she used throughout the story (as other authors I've read have done), saying 'this idea came from here, but this was of my own invention based on' whatever. I think that had she done so, it would have enhanced the story for me. Nonetheless, it was one of those books that, when you turn the last page, you are filled with sadness and regret that it is finished. It is full of descriptions that make you feel you are there and of characters you understand for the first time as having normal, everyday foibles and flaws. This is Diamant's first historical fiction work (published in 1997) and I think the only one she based in biblical times, but I hope it will not be the last.

昨年初夏、モロッコのワルザザート市街地で偶然撮影を見学しました。完成を楽しみにしていましたので購入しましたが、リージョンコードを確認しなかったので残念ながら視聴できませんでした。日本語版を期待します。