Pay It Forward Movie Review
Cast and Crew
Director: Mimi Leder
Producer: Peter Adrams, Robert Levy and Steven Reuther
Screenwriter: Leslie Dixon
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, Haley Joel Osment, Jay Mohr, James Caviezel, Jon Bon Jovi and Angie
Dickinson
The concept behind pay it “Forward” Is that a person is nor just good or bad. This film gives a
new spin on the word faith. If you believe the world can be changed by just a simple solution well then
this is the film for you to see. There is no age limit to who can change the world and this film “Pay it
Forward” introduces the new day in age ways of doing things.
Critics have feelings they can’t make up for this movie. Jay Carr says “It’s carried to an amazing
degree by its performance!” and I must agree with Jay. The director did a well job with his material and
the actors and actresses did a good job of expressing the story. Another critic has a different feel about
the movie; Peter Reiner says “With its smorgasbord of moralizing, Pay It Forward is a confusing welter of
sentiment.” This critic believes that it full of wild range events and the way the movie comments of
certain issues it is a confusing story to follow. For the fact that two critics have very different opinions on
the movie you almost don’t know which opinion to follow by so you got to watch the movie for yourself
and decide for yourself.
Seventh grade Social Studies teacher Eugene Simonet (Kevin Spacey) catches the students off
guard by challenging them to “change the world.” The students are to come up with a way to change
the world somehow and that what they come up with is worth half their grade. Student Trevor
McKinney (Haley Joel Osment) gets to thinking maybe he can change his world while he changes others.
From living in a troubled some home with his alcoholic, working-two-jobs almost a mother figure (Helen
Hunt) becomes part of his project in trying to “hook” her up. His first project becomes the homeless
junkie (James Caviezel) which he brings home to give him the warmth and food to get him started. For
being 11-years old he sure has a way of seeing big things.
What I think when I get here is this story more then it’s meant to be? Is this a story about love or
not? From continuing on in this story it is not a love story but still a soap opera of its own. Can Trevor
really carry out his plan? Or is this just too big of a leap?
“Pay it Forward” is a movie full of sentiment almost drowning in sentiment. The feeling they
drove you to feel maybe attacked it harder then it needed to be hit with. The scene was fitting but many
Los Angeles was the wrong place to hold such a story. If Los Angeles is the wrong place then what is the
right place? Somewhere with a more depressed feeling do you think? The characters played by Helen
Hunt and Kevin Spacey have so much to their past that there image and even facial expression showed
throughout the film.
This film is one of two emotions, inspirational and sappy. If you are captivated by the way
someone really takes charge of their determination then you should be determined to see this movie!
Now if you are more for the emotional , sad tenderness of the film then get ready to hold back those
tears.