Rating: 
Summary: If you haven't read the book . . .
Review: If you haven't read the book then you'd be quite lost and quite disapointed. If you've read the book, well then, you would not be lost but you'd be disapointed at how many elements were left out. Especially the relationship between Ellen and Sukeena. Many even question why Sukeena ended up in Rose Red in the first place or what was the connection between the two ladies and the fact that their relationship was a lot more intimate . . . those things are revealed in the book.The fact that Mr. Rimbauer's passions were feeding the house was only touched upon in passing in the movie, but the book lets you know that it was far more complicated then that. I would suggest that one read the book before seeing the movie(or after, if you've already seen it and then re-watch it- it'll make sense then)
Rating:
Summary: hmmmmm
Review: Read the book instead, if you really want to see what the "history" of Rose Red is.
Rating:
Summary: hmmmmm
Review: Read the book instead, if you really want to see what the "history" of Rose Red is.
Rating: 
Summary: Strange.....
Review: Since the rest of the reviewers on this page have said it best, Ill simply give my two cents and point out a huge screw up on the DVD side of things. The movie is decent. They use the original sets from Rose Red( which is a big plus because the house is what made the movie in my opinion) the acting is fairly well done and the story sets the stage for Rose Red itself. BUT there is one huge flaw in the production of this DVD. When you click on the "scene selection" option on the menu, another movies clips show up. Yes thats right, Lions Gate put ANOTHER films pictures in the selection menu with titles from The Diary of Ellen Rembauer. Its an asian film from the looks of it, and is also probably much creepier in that just the pictures from this film gave me the jitters. Well thats it, go check out the movie for its prequal info, and then look at its interesting mess up. And if anyone could tell me what movie they mixed the scene selection up with, Id like to know, it looks rather good!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: The book The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer was absoluteley riveting. The movie left out all the essential character building storyline. The Rimbauer's entire year of travel was cut into a couple of quick scenes (and they are completely inconsistent with the book). You are let in on secrets too early and without any background. Suspense is built on not knowing everything right away. You never get a sense of Rose Red as a character, when she is supposed to be the driving force of the story. The movie cut and pasted events and character roles into places where they do not make sense or are ineffective. I had to force myself to watch the rest of the movie...and it didn't get any better. Scary? I don't think so. Don't waste your time.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: The book The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer was absoluteley riveting. The movie left out all the essential character building storyline. The Rimbauer's entire year of travel was cut into a couple of quick scenes (and they are completely inconsistent with the book). You are let in on secrets too early and without any background. Suspense is built on not knowing everything right away. You never get a sense of Rose Red as a character, when she is supposed to be the driving force of the story. The movie cut and pasted events and character roles into places where they do not make sense or are ineffective. I had to force myself to watch the rest of the movie...and it didn't get any better. Scary? I don't think so. Don't waste your time.
Rating:
Summary: BORING AND NOT SCARY PREQUEL
Review: The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer is a sequel, or rather a prequel to the very successful Stephen King mini-series "Rose Red" a couple of years ago. The creepy and well-done ghost story about a vast mansion in seattle that continued to build itself even after it was empty. The prequel tells the story of how the mansion was built by oil magnate John Rimbauer and his marriage to Ellen. Mr. Rimbauer is, well, he's a sex maniac. And when he could not get some lovin' from his wife, he more he gladly made use of many of the servant staff in the huge mansion. All the while Ellen is learning that Rose Red is really alive with a presence that loves her but then becomes jealous and possesive of Ellen, even taking her daughter. She disappears without a trace and it forces Ellen to remain in the house rather than flee as she is advised to do by a Chinese psychic. Diary unfortunately doesn't have nearly the scare factor of Rose Red. You're a good 3/4 of the way into the movie before you detect any remote chill. Mostly we just get the lurid and sex-crazed life of Mr. Rimbauer. Not a good sequel and really not needed.
Rating:
Summary: BORING AND NOT SCARY PREQUEL
Review: The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer is a sequel, or rather a prequel to the very successful Stephen King mini-series "Rose Red" a couple of years ago. The creepy and well-done ghost story about a vast mansion in seattle that continued to build itself even after it was empty. The prequel tells the story of how the mansion was built by oil magnate John Rimbauer and his marriage to Ellen. Mr. Rimbauer is, well, he's a sex maniac. And when he could not get some lovin' from his wife, he more he gladly made use of many of the servant staff in the huge mansion. All the while Ellen is learning that Rose Red is really alive with a presence that loves her but then becomes jealous and possesive of Ellen, even taking her daughter. She disappears without a trace and it forces Ellen to remain in the house rather than flee as she is advised to do by a Chinese psychic. Diary unfortunately doesn't have nearly the scare factor of Rose Red. You're a good 3/4 of the way into the movie before you detect any remote chill. Mostly we just get the lurid and sex-crazed life of Mr. Rimbauer. Not a good sequel and really not needed.
Rating:
Summary: boring
Review: The novel upon which this movie is based was written as an accompaniment to the Stephen King miniseries "Rose Red," and was a decent enough attempt to broaden the characters and situations King created for that film. This movie, which reunites King (as an executive producer, which I suspect means he merely cashed the check he was given), author Ridley Pearson (who wrote the tie-in novel), and Craig Baxley (who directed both films), is one of the worst in the King filmography. It is appallingly boring, from beginning to end. I kid you not: nothing of interest happens the entire time. My memory of the novel is a bit sketchy, but I don't remember being so bored by it that I considered not even finishing, as was the case with this movie. The characters are cardboard-thin, with no insights of ANY sort into their motivations. Why is Rose Red so drawn to Ellen? Why is John such a terrible person? Why does Sukeena agree to move continents away from her home for this family? Don't expect any such answers from this movie, for you will not get them. Nor will you get one single scene that has anything resembling a scare. "Rose Red," though highly derivative, is a fairly entertaining and well-made movie, but this one is DOA. The only people I would reccommend this movie for are people who, like myself, feel compelled to own everything that has Stephen King's name on it. Everyone else, consider yourself warned.
Rating: 
Summary: Just didn't do it for me
Review: This film wasn't anything like I expected or wanted it to be. It was a let down. Although it explains some of the holes in Rose Red and fills out the characters quite nicely it just didn't hold out. The story is longer than it needs to be and there is little driving force behind the plot. In all honesty I tried to watch this movie 3 times and fell asleep every time. I have yet to see the ending.
| 
