Pay It Forward is a simple family tale, a love story whose characters would not be nearly so interesting if they were not so well-played by the primary cast members. Osment is Trevor, a seventh-grader who is a latchkey kid, weary of his mother's problems with alcohol and an abusive father who shows up when he feels like it. Trevor comes up with an ingenious solution that explains the film's elusive title. This structure is troublesome for much of the film, though when it comes together at the end, it makes sense. But far more compelling than any fancy plot tricks is Trevor's second good deed, introducing his teacher, Eugene, to his mom, Arlene.
Hunt plays the hard-ridden, recovering alcoholic, single mom with grit and heart.
Her hair and makeup make you squirm, as does her too-tight wardrobe, but she's superb at portraying Arlene's basically mistrusting nature, her brutal struggles with booze, and her newly discovered faith in her extraordinary little boy. And as Eugene lets down some of his guard, letting Arlene in, their dance of romance is sweet and endearing. Spacey, too, gives it his best, even through some awkward confessional moments. Pay It Forward is most successful when it allows humor to mingle with sorrow and shame, scene after scene, and allows its actors to portray real, fallible humans. But instead of ending as a love story with a social message that likely would have moved many young viewers, Pay It Forward succumbs to grandiosity, insisting on being a forced religious allegory.