"Pay It Forward"
"Think of an idea to change our world - and put it into action" - that is the first assignment posed by Eugene Simonet (Kevin Spacey) to his new seventh grade social studies class. One young boy, Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment), takes the assignment to heart and begins a cycle of good deeds that may really change the world in "Pay It Forward."
Pay it forward. What is it? If someone does you a decent turn, don't repay it, pay it forward. Do something good for three other people. Then, if they do three good turns and so on and so on. Before you know it, the world is a better place for everyone.
Trevor begins his own campaign to "pay it forward" when he befriends a homeless junkie named Jerry (James Caviezal) and brings him home, much to the chagrin and fright of Arlene McKinney (Helen Hunt), Trevor's mom. Arlene, a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas, is a single mom fighting her own demon - alcohol. She was married to an abusive drunkard (Jon Bon Jovi) who beat her regularly before she split for Vegas with Trevor.
When her son's attempt to save Jerry fails, the boy selects his teacher, the fire-scarred Mr. Simonet, as his next pay it forward target. The lonely Eugene is drawn to the troubled, pretty Arlene and the couple begins to form an emotional bond when her ex suddenly shows up - triggering one of Trevor's greatest fears. The chivalrous Eugene bows out of his budding relationship with Arlene without a word, leaving Trevor with another failed attempt to pay it forward. The boy's last effort, to help a meek kid at school stave off bullies, ends up being the one action that does, in fact, make the world a better place, even if the cost is fatally high.
Concurrent with this tale about Trevor is the search, by reporter Chris Chandler (Jay Mohr), to find the source of the idea of paying it forward. While trying to get a scoop on a hostage story, Chris's vintage Ford Mustang is wrecked by the fleeing perpetrator. A stranger who happens by hands the puzzled reporter the keys to a brand new Jaguar and leaves with just the words that he'll be in touch. When they get together later, the man tells Chris the true story of a street hood who did him a kindness, in a hospital emergency room, that helped his daughter, maybe saving her life. The gangster's word to the man, instead of accepting thanks, is to just pay the favor forward. Now, Chris is required to fulfill his own pay it forward obligation and becomes obsessed with finding the source of this remarkable philosophy. His search is the twine that binds his quest to Trevor's own story.
Director Mimi Leder takes a turn from her first, action feature entries, "The Peacemaker" and "Deep Impact," with the much more character driven material of Leslie Dixon's ("The Thomas Crown Affair" remake) original screenplay. The helmer benefits from the acting talents of the key players and is able to give some life to the preachy script. The idea of "pay it forward" is repeated so many times in the course of the film, even an extraordinarily obtuse person would get the point. The fairly economical film tries to cover too much territory as it delves into Trevor's attempts to save the world, the multiple relations of those around the boy, and the reporter's quest for the truth. It's a bit too ambitious a job and may have been better handled by a director with more experience dealing with character, rather than plot. Certainly a tighter screenplay would have befitted the efforts of the cast and crew.
The talented cast is led by two Oscar winners and one nominee, with Spacey, Hunt and Osment playing the challenged protagonists of the tale. All three show they deserve the acclaim gained in their recent efforts, though Spacey has proven his greatness as a superb character actor many times before. Made up as a burn victim of many years before, Spacey bears the heavy, uglifying makeup with dignity, showing Eugene as a complex, mostly dour character who has an inherent kindness that just wants to pop out and let him love Arlene and Trevor as his own family. When he is rejected, by his own sense of honor, your heart goes out to the man. Spacey makes you want Eugene to be happy.
Haley Joel Osment proves that he is not a one shot wonder for his perf in "The Sixth Sense" (although I am glad to say I noted the kid in the otherwise mundane 1996 Whoopi Goldberg/Gerard Depardieu comedy "Bogus"). In his portrayal of the right-minded Trevor the inherent intelligence and dedication of the boy is a significant force in the development of the story and Osment meets the need with a professionalism that belies his years.
Helen Hunt does fine as the put upon, alcoholic Arlene who doesn't see that Eugene is true salvation when her handsome, apologetic (and declared sober) ex returns. Unfortunately, Hunt developed her character as too sympathetic toward Eugene, so her sudden acceptance of the old ways doesn't play true. Especially since she doesn't consult Trevor, who is profoundly impacted by her decision. Unfortunately for Hunt, her character, Arlene, is not much different from her previous, Oscar-garnering perf in "As Good As It Gets." She's a working class, single Mom, struggling with adversity (ill kid versus alcohol) and meeting Mr. Right.
Jay Mohr does yeoman work as the smart-ass reporter digging for the story. Jim Caviezel isn't given much time as the recipient of Trevor's pay it forward, but his story gets a nice little coda of redemption when he save a young lady from self destruction. Angie Dickinson (unrecognized to me, though not others) plays Trevor's homeless - by choice - grandmother who has a late-breaking influence on things.
Techs are solid throughout. It's not the acting or the behind-the-camera work that is the problem. Dixon's overly ambition screenplay tries to cover too much ground in the allotted time and harps on its theme of "pay it forward." I got the idea early on, so the subsequent 20 or 30 references fell on deaf ears.
"Pay It Forward" is an odd mix of good acting talent and an under-achieving script that hampers the overall effort. Leder makes the transition from action to character study with more than a few bumps, but practice will make perfect, I suppose. With the credentials of the talent involved in this effort, I would have expected more, much more. I give it a C+.
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