As Denver related how his family members died, Ron was privileged enough to go to college where he became materialistic. Hounsou's scraggly voice shares these stories through extensive monologues as Kinnear and Zellweger listen, with Hounsou doling out precise line-reading and tears. His narrative duties are limited to telling a sad story from his past, crying, and making his new friends feel all that more assured about what they have done. You may unsubscribe from these email communications at any time. Same Kind of Different as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Tog… Summary & Study Guide includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis, quotes, character descriptions, themes, and more. That mental image soon barrels into the movie in the form of Suicide, literally with a baseball bat in hand as he tears up the homeless shelter's cafeteria. As the story ambles along, focused most of all on heart strings, Denver’s shallow purpose to the film is revealed. He had massive success. As Deborah pursued spiritual matters, Ron pursued wealth. He is later welcomed into their home, and their social lives. Denver helped Ron accept there were things he could not change. Ron quit a modest banking job to pursue a career as an art dealer. Gritty with pain and betrayal and brutality, it also shines with an unexpected, life-changing love. Directed by (1) Writing credits (6) Cast (56) Produced by (12) Music by (1) Cinematography by (1) Film Editing by (1) Casting By (2) Production Design by (1) Art Direction by (1) Set Decoration by (1) Costume Design by (1) Makeup Department (15) Ron, his family, Denver, and all those Deborah touched gave her an emotional funeral. It can be hard to disagree with the heart and events of this true tale, except for when the movie reveals itself to be mighty self-congratulatory. Its biggest risk is that it might alienate members of the KKK, but in this climate the film’s producers might think that’s ballsy enough. But Hounsou recognizes something volcanic in this character—a profound soul who has survived many lifetimes, alone; Hounsou believes something about this story that others do not. He ended up on the streets where he turned to drugs and alcohol. Although neither man wanted to spend time with each other at first, they learned to open up. By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from HarperCollins Christian Publishing (501 Nelson Place, Nashville, TN 37214 USA) providing information about products and services of HCCP and its affiliates. Ron Hall is an international art dealer whose long list of regular clients includes many celebrity personalities. Ron secretly detested homeless people but he agreed to appease his wife. The scenes are cringeworthy to be sure, like when one of Ron’s peers at a country club calls Denver an “amigo Negro,” but the shimmer, that value of “nice” is prominent, as performed by three capable actors. Based on the bestselling book, which inspired both a sequel and a children’s adaptation, “Same Kind of Different as Me” is the true story of a wealthy Texas white couple, Ron and Debbie (Greg Kinnear and Renee Zellweger), who befriend a violent homeless man (Djimon Hounsou).He calls himself Suicide, but is actually named Denver. Get Same Kind of Different as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Tog… from Amazon.com. Ron prayed to God, certain that Deborah would be healed because they were good Christians. Denver and Ron decided to write a book about their experiences. But instead of feeling like the story belongs to both men, this movie is told from Ron’s perspective, framed as the tale of a Texas art dealer who knew a great woman who helped introduce him to a sidekick. About the Author. Deborah accepted her impending death with grace after months of suffering. It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana… and an East Texas honky-tonk… and, without a doubt, in the heart of God. A dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery. He calls himself Suicide, but is actually named Denver. She worked for eleven years as a writer and editor at the national news biweekly WORLD magazine and is a U.S. Navy veteran. True to the hollow cinematic spirit of this movie, Carney can only accompany with bland flashbacks or stubborn modern-day close-ups that soak us in Hounsou’s wet eyes. The author or coauthor of ten books, Lynn has sold 12 million copies since 2006. Same Kind of Different as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Tog… from, Order our Same Kind of Different as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Tog Study Guide, teaching or studying Same Kind of Different as Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Tog. Ron Moore also grew up on a cotton plantation but he had a positive experience because of his white skin. Deborah convinced Ron to volunteer at a homeless shelter. Denver Moore was born on a cotton plantation in the middle of the twenthieth century. Ron and Denver became best friends, attending George W. Bush’s inauguration together in 2005. The couple grew distant and Ron had an affair. Lynn Vincent is the New York Times best-selling writer of Heaven Is for Real and Same Kind of Different As Me. Denver committed robbery out of necessity, which landed him in prison for ten years. In fact, in many instances, Kinnear, Zellweger and Hounsou make the production seem like it has more soul than the sappy strings, wholesale dialogue and lazy filmmaking would suggest. “Same Kind of Different as Me” is a top nominee for the Nice Movie of 2017, in that it just wants to exist and be kind when not trying to extract tears from its audience like test subjects. Raised by a succession of family members who are all black sharecroppers, he lives in aDeep South still in the grips of institutional and economic racism, which makes it impossible for him to get ahead. She decided that man was Denver. It should be said that Hounsou gives what is hands down one of the most intense performances that these modern religious blockbusters will ever see. During this time, Ron and Denver became closer. Ron married a Christian woman, Deborah, and they raised a family. All Rights Reserved. Debut co-writer/director Michael Carney doesn’t have much of an eye for any of this saga, which includes a “Blind Side”-like narrative that transitions into a weepy sickness tale fit for Nicholas Sparks that I won’t spoil, but the true story aspect is a type of preservation itself. Ron believed God was speaking through both of them. Deborah was diagnosed with cancer. Learning the story of a man who came from so little and games so much.”, “Working with an excellent cast and crew to help tell the story of Ron’s challenging personal journey it was a creative joy.”, Get an Autographed Copy & Bless the Homeless, www.samekindofdifferentasmefoundation.org/, Get Autographed Copies of Both Same Kind of Different as Me & Workin' Our Way Home, Get 36 Books at only $10 per book - and Bless the Homeless. The friendship that forms between these two men at a time when both were in great need is an inspiration to all of us to be more compassionate to everyone we come in contact with.”, To embody Denver spirit was at once an emotional challenge and an extreme privilege. Although Ron still felt resentment toward God, he championed his Christian faith in the work’s final passages. Denver taught Ron to stop valuing material things and Ron taught Denver to trust again. We learn, through monologues accompanied by flashback, about Denver's truly unbelievable past: that he lived in Louisiana and picked cotton in what was essentially slavery, completely removed from the civil rights movement or any such modernity; that he was beaten by KKK members as a teenager, and later went to prison for trying to rob a bus in Shreveport. The book, which features the “voices” of Ron and Denver as organized by their co-author Lynn Vincent, makes a point of starting with Denver’s narration before then going to Ron, as Denver shares a horrifying racist episode from his youth that’s featured in the middle of the film. Denver got a reputation as a mean and violent homeless man, but it was just a survival mechanism. A story so incredible no novelist would dare dream it. An upscale art dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel. During the years Ron pursued wealth, Denver left the cotton plantation and hitched a train to Dallas. Instead of divorcing Ron, Deborah chose to work on their marriage and put her faith in the church. help you understand the book. He is the writer and producer of the Paramount Pictures film, Same Kind of Different As Me. Site design and development by Clearly Media, A powerful example of the healing, restorative power of forgiveness in the transformational, life-changing power of unconditional love.”, Denver Moore and Ron Hall story moved me to tears. While there is a fascinating story within here of an unlikely connection between a married couple and Denver, “Same Kind of Different as Me” would rather make it specifically and obnoxiously about the selfless, magical white people and the human being who benefited from their kindness. Denver Moore. Before she died, Deborah and Denver experienced the same visions. The story is told in the first-person, past tense. Ron realized that Denver seemed to possess prophetic abilities. Ron trusted Denver to deliver valuable equipment in his car, but worried the homeless man would steal from him.