Barnes & Noble

One of last year's most touching, heartfelt dramas, Pay It Forward movingly conveys a simple yet profound message: We all share responsibility for making the world a better place. That's the lesson young Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment of The Sixth Sense) gleans from the social-studies class taught by Eugene Simonet (Kevin Spacey). So he comes up with an ingenious concept: When someone does you a favor, don't pay it back, pay it forward -- in other words, do a favor for someone else. Trevor's enthusiastically implemented idea yields remarkable results, but not all of them are beneficial. As directed by Mimi Leder (Deep Impact), this sterling adaptation of Catherine Ryan Hyde's novel stirs all the emotions, hitting notes of joyous triumph and heartbreaking poignancy. Top acting honors go to the starring trio, including Helen Hunt as Trevor's at-wit's-end mother, and the supporting players Jay Mohr, Angie Dickinson, and Jon Bon Jovi are also effective in their limited roles. Frankly sentimental without becoming treacly, Pay It Forward is one of those rare movies that inspires as it entertains. Leder discusses the film in a feature-length commentary for the DVD, which also includes an HBO "First Look" featurette, production notes, and cast/director highlights. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

A young boy stumbles upon a simple way to change the world in this drama. Trevor (Haley Joel Osment) is a bright 11-year-old boy who comes from a troubled home; his mother Arlene (Helen Hunt) is an alcoholic trying to hold down two jobs to support her son, while Trevor's father Jon Bon Jovi) left his family behind some time ago. At school, Trevor's class is introduced to their new social studies teacher, Mr. Simonet (Kevin Spacey), a guarded man with severe facial scars. Simonet gives his class an unusual assignment -- think up a practical way to make the world a better place, and put it into action. Trevor comes up with the notion of Pay It Forward" -- do a needed favor for three different people without being asked, and then ask them to do the same for three others. Trevor starts by letting Jerry (James Caviezal), a junkie living on the streets, stay in his home. Next, he tries to fix Arlene up with Mr. Simonet, since both seem to be lonely and the clean and sober teacher might help Arlene stay away from alcohol. Finally, he tries to rescue one of his schoolmates, who is constantly tormented by bullies. Meanwhile, journalist Chris Chandler (Jay Mohr) finds himself stuck on the road without a car late one night when a man stops and give him the keys to a new car, asking him only to pay the favor forward to someone else; astonished, Chris wants to find out where this philosophy came from. Based on the novel by Catherine Ryan Hide, Pay It Forward also stars Angie Dickinson and Liev Schreiber. Mark Deming

Boston Globe

***....the kind of film you've got to admire simply for the way it squares its shoulders and plunges into a message of unfashionable idealism. The title explains its central idea. So does Kevin Spacey's tightly buttoned social studies teacher in a Las Vegas elementary school. What really counts, he tells his pupils on opening day, is interacting with the world....''Pay It Forward'' has a couple of things going against it but a lot more going for it. Jay Carr

Product Details

• UPC: 085391887720
• Source: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English, Français
• Subtitles: English, Français
• Time: 2:03:00
• Sales Rank: 10,876

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Films of Faith Collection, Volume Two
• Walk to Remember / Pay It Forward

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