The Worst Film Ever

Thanks for the memories!

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

This is what Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment) comes up with for his assignment on his first day of Social Studies.The assignment is simple:Come up with an idea to change the world.What Trevor conceives is an idea where instead of paying back the favors that are done for us, we pay them forward...By finding three people in need of something vital -something they can't do on their own- and doing it for them, thus creating a chain of benevolence, and goodwill which hopefully will be perpetuated:By the three people we've just helped, following our example.With this in mind, he finds an indigent man (Jim Caviezel), and decides to help him out, giving him some money, and letting him sleep in his house for one night without his mother's knowledge.When this first attempt seems to crash and burn, Trevor turns his attention to his diligent but but deeply sorrowful teacher Eugene Simonet (Kevin Spacey), who appears to have no one in his life who loves him, and who's face is tragically disfigured.Trevor's mother Arlene (Helen Hunt), is a struggling young cocktail waitress in Las Vegas who's recovering from a long bout of alcoholism, and having trouble coping with her child's disappointment in her.With a little maneuvering from Trevor, the two of them get together, and begin a relationship which, though great in the beginning, threatens to fall apart as obstacles block it's path.Meanwhile, in what appears to be the near future (and serving as a poignant opening to the movie), an L.A journalist named Chris Chandler (Jay Mohr) is given a brand new Jaguar by a complete stranger after his own car gets destroyed.Struck by this out of the blue event, he decides to investigate the matter further, which uncovers a chain of events eventually leading to Trevor himself.Pay It Forward is a terrific, and refreshing movie which manages to have a little humor despite it's dramatic premise.Everybody is good in it, and everybody seems committed to what the story has to say.I was particularly impressed that the director was a woman, since not too many women are good at directing movies.The ending is shocking, but is really the only good way to bring the story to a close.Those who don't agree should see the movie again.Originally, Review #75Posted On: May 31, 2010

Last week I reviewed a film called The Contender. The title would have been even more appropriate for this week's film Pay It Forward. In the 1954 Oscar-winning film On the Waterfront Marlon Brando has a great speech in which he says, "I could've been a contender, instead of a bum, which is what I am." I left Pay It Forward thinking a great deal about what it could have been.The premise is engaging. Kevin Spacey plays a middle-school teacher who challenges his students to come up with a strategy for changing the world. One of his students, Trevor, comes up with the interesting idea that is the heart of the film. He says that we worry about paying people back when they do us a favor--maybe we should pay it forward. He decides that he will do something for three different people, instructing them each to do something positive for three other people instead of paying him back. If this exponential altruism catches on it might just change the world.One of Trevor's not-so-random acts of kindness is to get his mother together with his teacher. Trevor is an only child living with an overworked alcoholic mother. His teacher is a single man with a badly scarred face. He knows that they would be good for each other and does everything he can to get them together.There are, of course, complications. The primary weakness of the film is best described by quoting Richard Foster. Foster tells of a publisher who responded to a manuscript by saying "this is original and creative . . . unfortunately the parts that are original are not creative, and the parts that are creative are not original." Once we get past the engaging premise the film becomes a virtual compendium of cliches. We move back and forth between the chain of altruism and the budding romance but both plot lines are chock full of melodramatic machinations.The sad thing is that with a little better writing this could have been an excellent film. The performances are outstanding. Kevin Spacey is excellent as always, Helen Hunt gives one of the best performances of her career, and Haley Joel Osment proves that he is, pound for pound, one of the best actors working.I liked the film overall, but I really wanted to like it more than I did. In this season where we are drowning in the politics of self-interest, anything that encourages civility and compassion is a refreshing change. My expectations were so high that I left a bit disappointed. I am hoping that if I lower your expectations you might see it and like it more than you thought you would. It would please me greatly to do you that small favor. If it does work out that way, no need to thank me or pay me back, just pay it forward.

Have to say that this movie is not one of my favorites, but it also is a movie that is "on the edge" of what pushes jaded "professional reviewers" over that edge.When looking at an overall consensus of "critics" and "viewer" opinions, the actual VIEWERS opinions, those people who watch movies by choice, and not because it's "their job" this movie gets more positive feedback, in fact from what I can see the jaded, "forced to watch it" critics hate this movie.IMDb on the other hand shows ratings based on viewers opinions and it's those opinions lately I go to for a more even handed and realistic view of whether I will like a movie. Even this movie which really is an "over the top" good lord this is just a bit too much to take kind of movie the score is still even handed and fair. Yes it leans past the middle into the positive but quite frankly even if you hate this type of thing it still deserves it.I did enjoy many moments. I did wish the world could be maybe a little bit that maudlin "sometimes" within limits.But overall what it shows me is that IMDb is much closer to showing me scores and reviews that match how I feel about movies compared to almost every other review site. There is some overlap of course, some movies just can't be panned even by the most jaded reviewers.Pay It Forward is a very sappy sugary type of movie but even the worst of us enjoy that type of snack occasionally, even if we would NEVER admit it publicly.

Now I know... I could perceived things, things happened to me long time ago, happens now and maybe will happen tomorrow. The reason... We all are here, living for not to pay back what we are given, but to pay forward How beautiful phrase it is, TO PAY FORWARD Special thanks for Catherine Ryan Hyde, A writer of the book/movie "Pay It Forward" We all think about to pay back. If our parents bring us up, we care them because they had done for us before. It is wrong. They do for use, but we don't pay back, we pay forward to our kids. Also we care our parents not because to pay back something, because we love them. Only reason. This film taught me a lot of things which were unclear, but actually they were clear, but I was blind. That's what I learned.