Same Kind of Different as Me

Of course the book is better, it always is. My hubby read and loved the book (although he felt the book had a slow start he stuck with it) He was eager to watch the movie... and he was very disappointed by it. As expected there were changes to the movie and things left out but beyond that, the movie was just lacking. I can't put my finger on it... the acting, the directing, no character development... definitely the pacing. The movie was slow and uneven and the acting was wooden and hollow... if it wasn't for these actors being famous I'd say the acting was almost amateur. They really could have done so much more with this heartwarming and encouraging true story In My Humble Opinion! 11/2019

My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library.

This is based on real people and their stories. Dallas and Ft Worth area fine art dealer is Greg Kinnear as Ron Hall. He is somewhat happily married to Renée Zellweger as Debbie Hall. We find out somewhat early in this movie that he has been stepping out on her and he attributes that to their very cooled off relationship, having been married 19 years and now with two teenagers.

Debbie is persistent, she calls the woman and tells her she probably won't be seeing Ron anymore, she still loves him and is determined to get their relationship back to where it was.

She takes what at first seems to be a strange approach, she brings him to a rough part of town where many homeless hang out. She and he will help serve food to the homeless, something she has been doing unknown to him. Her strategy is, if her husband can reconnect with what is important in life, instead of business meeting after business meeting, they can get their spark back.

In the process they meet Djimon Hounsou as Denver, one of the homeless and also very angry. When he comes in with a baseball bat and starts smashing things. But Debbie is unafraid, she recognizes the man needs friendship. In the process we find out Denver's rough early life in Louisiana, and seven years at Angola for robber as a teenager, he grew up pretty much detesting white folks. But he gains redemption as well as Ron.

In a smaller but important role Jon Voight is really good as Earl, who is Ron's father but there is lots of friction. At the end of the movie during the credits we see photos of the actual Hall family as well as Denver.

This film tells the story of a wealthy couple who drifted apart. They become closer together by helping in a homeless shelter, and in the process they deeply touch other people's hearts.

I haven't imagined how touching this film can be. I thought it was a forgettable romantic comedy, but it turns out to be a very emotional and touching drama about how to love one another. All we have to do is to reach out to people in need, listen to the person and he genuinely there to love and care. I find this film very touching.

It is a very motivating movie; the plot is moving and the performances of Renée Zellweger and Djimon Hounsou are sublime; highly recommended.

That this movie has not received the publicity and advanced advertising that it truly deserves is shameful -- the producers and production studio should be ashamed of themselves and they will reap their due reward from low attendance and most likely box office profit loss. This film definitely is worth its proverbial weight (cost) in gold. First and foremost is the plot itself, which propels the human instinct of avoidance of the uncomfortable, as with dirty homeless people, to a higher plane of reaching out, in caring rather than invasive ways, in order to actually help those less fortunate despite their social handicaps. That there is a Christian spirit about this movie is without doubt, but there is no specific religious dogma or theology. There is no "action", there is no graphic violence, there is no nudity, there is no profanity -- how completely refreshing in a movie. It is all character and dialog driven -- the acting is absolutely top notch, the dialog thoughtful and smart. The theme: reconciliation in all of our weakened or seemingly broken relationships if possible, with the onus being on ourselves to make the effort, in other words doing what we can to heal ourselves, and then being able to effectively, meaningfully reach out to and help those less fortunate, with respect rather than pity. This movie is a true treasure which, sadly I fear, will be missed by a very large audience due to lack of effective promotion.