Nevermind the British accents these Semites carry through the Sinai deserts. This is a Lifetime cable TV movie Bible story, after all.
And we can forgive the sometimes modern-sounding dialogue.
But how are we supposed to accept the makeover of what scholars see as a Biblical rape into a bodice-ripping Harlequin romance? The topic is too loaded to merely dismiss (in Genesis, the prince “saw her, took her, lay with her and humbled her”), but let’s remember this is legend reinterpreted as a novel, further adapted for television.
Not to quibble (we’re way beyond quibbling), but the TV version of the Bible story referenced in airing tonight and Monday for two hours each night, takes more than a few liberties in pursuit of the female-skewing audience of the Lifetime network. Perhaps the home of “Dance Moms” and “The Sisterhood” (a reality series about young women becoming nuns) shouldn’t be our primary Old Testament study guide.
Anita Diamant’s 1997 book about the women’s tent, the time-of-the-month bonding that occurred there, the passing down of ancient female wisdom, including fertility/maternity idol worship and midwifery, becomes a star-studded affair for television.
Amidst the bad wigs and sand, look for (“Return to Zero,” “About a Boy”), Morena Baccarin (“Homeland”), (“The White Queen”), (“Game of Thrones”), Will Tudor (“Game of Thrones”) and Debra Winger (“Terms of Endearment”), all finding work that’s less of a commitment than series TV.
In addition to Glen (Jorah Mormont in “GoT”) as Jacob, there’s even some theme music that’s frighteningly close — call the folks in legal — to that of “Game of Thrones,” perhaps to unconsciously suggest the epic sweep of the film. There’s no better demonstration of the power of the modern medium: the Bible needs the reflected glory of “GoT” to give it epic status.
The story is told through the eyes of Dinah (Ferguson), the daughter of Jacob and Leah who is barely mentioned in the original source material. Actually, she’s raised as the daughter of four mothers Leah (Driver), Rachel (Baccarin), Zilpah and Bilhah, the four wives of Jacob. She is Jacob’s only daughter, considered headstrong by the tribe.
“For thousands of years I have been lost to the world. My name means nothing to you. My memory is dust. Only the names of my father and brothers are remembered — their tales celebrated in your holy texts. While mine is but a footnote, sad and violent, all but forgotten.”
So says Dinah in voiceover narration, introducing her tale.
Each of the patriarch’s future wives is shown as a young girl, until one by one they turn, jump or peek into view in quick edits as their adult (star) selves. It’s quite the introduction for Driver, Baccarin and Ferguson.
Of course Dinah’s love story with an Egyptian prince is cut short, so to speak, by the brutality of her brothers, who react badly to her deciding for herself who to marry. From forced circumcisions to fatal stabbings, there will be blood, a recurring theme of Diamant’s.
The film doesn’t reinvent the Biblical fiction format but it is interesting enough to move you to read Diamant’s take on ancient sisterhood.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830, jostrow@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ostrowdp
