Pay it Forward (1/1/2000)

Directed by Mimi Leder (Deep Impact, The Peacemaker)

Starring Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, Haley Joel Osment, and Jim Caviezel

If you haven't already seen the Mimi Leder film “Pay It Forward” with Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, Jim Caviezel, and Haley Joel Osment, I recommend checking it out. This isn't an action flick, it's not a comedy… it's a compelling drama that follows the efforts of a young boy who has a desire to make a difference in the world.

This film paints a pretty accurate picture of the world today: an alcoholic mom (Helen Hunt) with a shattered past working two jobs to try to get by, a teacher (Kevin Spacey) bearing the scars of an abusive past, a homeless lady, a convict, and a boy caught in the middle. Although there is no sex or nudity in this film, it is PG-13 and full of content that you would want to review first. Refer to www.ScreenIt.com for a full content review.

The movie “Pay It Forward” brings up many issues that hit home for kids today, and provokes many positive discussions about how we can respond to what life throws at us. The two main topics that I thought about when watching the film were evangelism and forgiveness.

Although the film never talks about evangelism, the film provides a great springboard to discuss it. A social studies assignment leads to social change in cities from Las Vegas to Los Angeles when an 11 year old boy, Trevor (Haley Joel Osment) puts his heart into an extra credit assignment. The assignment is to think of something that can change the world … and put it into action. Trevor comes up with a plan that looks much like Robert Coleman's Master Plan of Evangelism. He launches the idea he calls “Pay It Forward,” his goal being helping three people, who each help three people, who each help three more, and so on.

Trevor decides that he would help three people in a way that they couldn't help themselves: he tries to help a homeless person (The Passion's Jim Caviezel) clean up and get a job, he tries to hook up his mom with a positive man in her life, and he tries to keep his friend from getting beat up at school. He is discouraged as some of his efforts fail, but they prove to be far from futile when they start multiplying from person to person by the end of the film.

The film made me think of times that I was discouraged when I didn't see the fruit of my hard work. If only Trevor had the encouragement Paul offered us in this verse: I Corinthians 15:58- “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and steady, always enthusiastic about the Lord's work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” Sometimes in life we don't see the results of our good deeds. God assures us that nothing we do for him is in vain.

Furthermore, this film illustrates how even a young kid who puts his heart into doing right can do amazing things. Many of us often feel like our efforts are futile. But we can't give up. God rewards our perseverance. In the film Trevor says, “I guess it's hard for people who are so used to things the way they are — even if they're bad — to change. 'Cause they kind of give up. And when they do, everybody kind of loses.”

This film also addresses forgiveness head on. The alcoholic mother, Arlene (Helen Hunt), struggles with the alcoholism and abuse in her own past, holding her mother responsible for all that happened. Her grudge against her mother kept their relationship at a distance.

Arlene comes to a point in the movie where she is compelled to follow her son's example and help someone in a way they can't help them self. She realizes that the help that her mother needs is forgiveness for the past. Arlene seeks her mother out and basically tells her, “You know all the drinking, all the men, all the stuff that happened to me that shouldn't have … I FORGIVE YOU!” A powerful scene.

Her reconciliation goes a step further by allowing her back in their lives. That step of boldness by Arlene continues on the “Pay It Forward” process that eventually caught on.

When you watch this film, ask your self what you can do to “pay Christ's love forward.”

Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):

1. What are some of the messages or themes you observed in this movie?
2. How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
3. How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?