Pay It Forward
starring: Kevin Spacey, Haley Joel Osment, Helen Hunt, Jay Mohr, James Caviezel
directed by: Mimi Leder
directed by: Mimi Leder
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Product Description:
How much impact can one heartfelt idea have? a junior-high student's class project idea ignites a chain reaction of goodness and consequences. The boy's idea: when someone does you a favor, don't pay it back, pay it forward.
Amazon.com:
Pay It Forward is a multi-level marketing scheme of the heart. Beginning as a seventh-grade class assignment to put into action an idea that could change the world, young Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment) comes up with a plan to do good deeds for three people who then by way of payment each must do good turns for three other people. These nine people also must pay it forward and so on, ad infinitum. If successful, the resulting network of do-gooders ought to comprise the entire world. Trevor's attempts to get the ball rolling include befriending a junkie (James Caviezel) and trying to set up his recovering-alcoholic mother (Helen Hunt) with his burn-victim teacher (Kevin Spacey), who posed the assignment.
While this could have turned into unmitigated schmaltz, the acting elevates this film to mitigated schmaltz. By turns powerful and measured, the performances of Spacey, Hunt, and Osment can't make up for the many missteps in a screenplay that sanitizes the look of the lower-middle class and expects us to believe that homeless alcoholics and junkies speak in the elevated manner of grad students. (Can that really be Angie Dickinson as Hunt's dispossessed mother? Yes, it is!) The germ of the story is a good one, though, and one may wonder how it would have been handled by the likes of Frank Capra, who could balance sentiment with humor. But clearly Capra would never have let the ending of his version to take the nosedive into cliché and pathos that director Mimi Leder has allowed in this film. More than a few viewers will also recognize that Leder has blatantly borrowed her final image from Field of Dreams, where its intended effect was more keenly and honestly felt. --Jim Gay
How much impact can one heartfelt idea have? a junior-high student's class project idea ignites a chain reaction of goodness and consequences. The boy's idea: when someone does you a favor, don't pay it back, pay it forward.
Amazon.com:
Pay It Forward is a multi-level marketing scheme of the heart. Beginning as a seventh-grade class assignment to put into action an idea that could change the world, young Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment) comes up with a plan to do good deeds for three people who then by way of payment each must do good turns for three other people. These nine people also must pay it forward and so on, ad infinitum. If successful, the resulting network of do-gooders ought to comprise the entire world. Trevor's attempts to get the ball rolling include befriending a junkie (James Caviezel) and trying to set up his recovering-alcoholic mother (Helen Hunt) with his burn-victim teacher (Kevin Spacey), who posed the assignment.
While this could have turned into unmitigated schmaltz, the acting elevates this film to mitigated schmaltz. By turns powerful and measured, the performances of Spacey, Hunt, and Osment can't make up for the many missteps in a screenplay that sanitizes the look of the lower-middle class and expects us to believe that homeless alcoholics and junkies speak in the elevated manner of grad students. (Can that really be Angie Dickinson as Hunt's dispossessed mother? Yes, it is!) The germ of the story is a good one, though, and one may wonder how it would have been handled by the likes of Frank Capra, who could balance sentiment with humor. But clearly Capra would never have let the ending of his version to take the nosedive into cliché and pathos that director Mimi Leder has allowed in this film. More than a few viewers will also recognize that Leder has blatantly borrowed her final image from Field of Dreams, where its intended effect was more keenly and honestly felt. --Jim Gay
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- The good and the bad
This is such a wonderful story and could even be a true to life story.But I was SO DISAPPOINTED that it will not be one that I can retain for my personal collection, nor let my friends and family experience, because of the extremely foul language and the explicit sexual scene.I thought of how easily this film could have been "cleaned up" and the message and story line would not have been diminished in the least.If you have children watching I most assuredly would not recommend it, but as an ... Read More
Rating: 
- Pay It Forward...enjoyable movie!
I thought this was an enjoyable movie about how we can improve the lives of people we don't even know. Kevin Spacey,Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osmont did a super job in this movie. Look for James Caviezel in this movie as Jerry prior to his role in the Passion of the Christ.Even Jon Bon Jovi is a part of the contest. This movies may not be for everyone with scenes of alcohol and violence but I thought it was a movie with a positive message. I enjoyed it!
Rating: - Play it forward many times
If you view this movie, you will want to go back and play it forward many times as time goes by, it is that good.
Rating: - Pay It Forward
Thisis one of the most heart felt movies I've ever seen. What the boy was trying to to change the world. It's just to bad he looses his life trying to help someone
Rating: - Very moving and motivational
This book has had a big impact of those of us who have read it. It is a wonderful story with a premise that would change the world for the better if everyone lived by it. Of course, I didn't like the ending; too heartbreaking. But, the story is wonderful and I have many stories where I have seen examples of "Paying it Forward". That means that this book is compelling and is worth the read. Everyone could learn from this story.
- The good and the badThis is such a wonderful story and could even be a true to life story.But I was SO DISAPPOINTED that it will not be one that I can retain for my personal collection, nor let my friends and family experience, because of the extremely foul language and the explicit sexual scene.I thought of how easily this film could have been "cleaned up" and the message and story line would not have been diminished in the least.If you have children watching I most assuredly would not recommend it, but as an ... Read More
- Pay It Forward...enjoyable movie!I thought this was an enjoyable movie about how we can improve the lives of people we don't even know. Kevin Spacey,Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osmont did a super job in this movie. Look for James Caviezel in this movie as Jerry prior to his role in the Passion of the Christ.Even Jon Bon Jovi is a part of the contest. This movies may not be for everyone with scenes of alcohol and violence but I thought it was a movie with a positive message. I enjoyed it!
- Play it forward many timesIf you view this movie, you will want to go back and play it forward many times as time goes by, it is that good.
- Pay It ForwardThisis one of the most heart felt movies I've ever seen. What the boy was trying to to change the world. It's just to bad he looses his life trying to help someone
- Very moving and motivationalThis book has had a big impact of those of us who have read it. It is a wonderful story with a premise that would change the world for the better if everyone lived by it. Of course, I didn't like the ending; too heartbreaking. But, the story is wonderful and I have many stories where I have seen examples of "Paying it Forward". That means that this book is compelling and is worth the read. Everyone could learn from this story.
