The Numbers - Box Office Data, Movie Stars, Idle Speculation

Shop at Amazon.com!

Buy Posters at AllPosters.com
Sunday, July 6, 2008

Pay it Forward

The Numbers Rating: 5.50 (2 votes) Rate it - Rating Details
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 40% - Rotten
Theatrical Performance
Total US Gross $33,508,922
Released October 20, 2000
Production Budget $40,000,000
MPAA Rating PG-13 for mature thematic elements including substance abuse/recovery, some sexual situations, language and brief violence
Running Time:123 minutes
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Produced by Tapestry Films
Music Composed By Thomas Newman
Source Based on Book/Short Story
Major Genre Drama
Country United States
Production Method Live Action
Creative Type Contemporary Fiction
Director Mimi Leder

Follow up to Pay It Foward
by Marla

I decided to take my own advice on Pay It Forward and see it for myself. First of all, let me just say that this film is certainly NOT Best Picture material, nor is it at all a good movie from a critical point of view. The script is weak and far too sappy, and the ending, as the advance reviews pointed out, is dissatisfying and deeply flawed.

My feeling is that the movie tries to take on too much. It attempts to encompass and address a ridiculous number of themes, including the devastating effects of alcoholism, spousal abuse, the death of innocence, fear of change, fear of intimacy, the power of forgiveness, what it means to be truly inspired, the paradox of faith, the weaknesses inherent in human nature, and plenty more.

Any one of these themes could have been given a larger focus, which would have vastly improved the movie. Instead, there are so many ideas and resonances jostling for attention that the individual issues aren't given enough depth. The movie skates along from moment to moment, with each scene packing a different sort of punch. The viewer barely recovers from the shock of one intense moment before being hit by another, with a completely different thematic meaning. This phenomenon weakens the plot and waters down the emotional impact of the movie.

Despite all of this, I liked the film. There are several very good scenes, and plenty of indisputably funny moments. There certainly isn't anything to complain about with regards to the acting: Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, and Haley Joel Osment were all excellent and gave intense performances, despite the poor writing. Remaining true to their characters must have been difficult given the rather unrealistic scenarios in which they found themselves, but all three managed to remain consistent and fulfilled their roles with integrity.

Mimi Leder did a reasonably good job at directing, too. Las Vegas was an excellent choice of locale for the movie-its landscape is filled with stark contrasts, forming an effective backdrop for the strong emotions and harsh reality of the character's lives. Some of Leder's techniques were very well done, such as her juxtaposition of the city's blighted back alleys with the polish and glitter of The Strip, just blocks away. Her judicious use of the local topography in various scenes -- flat, white desert surmounted by knife-edged black peaks -- added greatly to my enjoyment of the film.

Perhaps the ultimate lesson to be learned from this movie is that some stories which work well in novels fail miserably when presented on film. Although I haven't read Catherine Ryan Hyde's novel Pay It Forward, I can imagine that its overabundance of themes might be a strength rather than a weakness, provided that the novel is able to deepen and connect each bit of the plot.

In the end, it wasn't worth spending nine dollars to see Pay It Forward, although devoted fans of Spacey, Hunt, or Osment might want to catch it as a matinee on a quiet Sunday afternoon. Those of you who are curious should go read the novel. Be sure to let me know what you think.

Marla October 27, 2000

Cast

Haley Joel Osment    Trevor McKinney
Kevin Spacey    Eugene Simonet
Helen Hunt    Arlene McKinney
James Caviezel    Jerry
Shawn Pyfrom    Sean
Jeanetta Arnette   
Jon Bon Jovi    Ricky
Angie Dickinson    Grace
Marc Donato   
Rusty Meyers    News Stand Guy
Jay Mohr    Chris Chandler
David Ramsey   

Weekend Chart Record

DateRank Gross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossDays
10/20/2000 4 $9,631,359   2,130 $4,522 $9,631,359 3
10/27/2000 5 $6,803,726 -29.36% 2,130 $3,194 $19,035,222 10
11/3/2000 7 $4,278,516 -37.12% 2,130 $2,009 $25,126,486 17
11/10/2000 8 $3,025,447 -29.29% 2,005 $1,509 $29,363,880 24
11/17/2000 13 $1,075,509 -64.45% 1,415 $760 $31,146,175 31
11/24/2000 16 $564,236 -47.54% 602 $937 $32,059,159 38
12/1/2000 17 $367,920 -34.79% 531 $693 $32,549,288 45
12/8/2000 24 $127,953 -65.22% 284 $451 $32,801,029 52
12/15/2000 34 $53,498 -58.19% 152 $352 $32,901,836 59
12/22/2000 51 $10,770 -79.87% 47 $229 $32,940,895 66
12/29/2000 56 $12,118 +12.52% 47 $258 $32,966,043 73
1/5/2001 54 $12,952 +6.88% 37 $350 $32,987,504 80
1/12/2001 33 $169,173 +1,206.15% 226 $749 $33,161,987 87
1/19/2001 37 $115,486 -31.73% 194 $595 $33,319,245 94
1/26/2001 44 $77,426 -32.96% 154 $503 $33,443,457 101
2/2/2001 57 $32,683 -57.79% 81 $403 $33,508,922 108

Daily Chart Record

DateRank Gross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossDays
10/20/2000 4 $3,115,000   2,130 $1,462 $3,115,000 1
10/21/2000 4 $4,032,000 +29.44% 2,130 $1,893 $7,147,000 2
10/22/2000 3 $2,391,000 -40.70% 2,130 $1,123 $9,631,359 3
10/23/2000 3 $638,817 -73.28% 2,130 $300 $10,270,176 4
10/24/2000 3 $710,379 +11.20% 2,130 $334 $10,980,555 5
10/25/2000 3 $618,343 -12.96% 2,130 $290 $11,598,898 6
10/26/2000 4 $632,598 +2.31% 2,130 $297 $12,231,496 7
10/27/2000 4 $2,026,923 +220.41% 2,130 $952 $14,258,419 8
10/28/2000 5 $2,935,941 +44.85% 2,130 $1,378 $17,194,360 9
10/29/2000 6 $1,696,000 -42.23% 2,130 $796 $19,035,000 10
10/30/2000 5 $395,810 -76.66% 2,130 $186 $19,431,032 11
10/31/2000 5 $485,048 +22.55% 2,130 $228 $19,916,080 12
11/1/2000 5 $457,263 -5.73% 2,130 $215 $20,373,343 13
11/2/2000 5 $474,627 +3.80% 2,130 $223 $20,847,970 14
11/3/2000 7 $1,231,000 +159.36% 2,130 $578 $22,079,000 15
11/4/2000 6 $1,873,000 +52.15% 2,130 $879 $23,951,000 16
11/5/2000 8 $1,006,000 -46.29% 2,130 $472 $25,126,486 17
11/6/2000 7 $262,612 -73.90% 2,130 $123 $25,389,098 18
11/7/2000 7 $333,366 +26.94% 2,130 $157 $25,722,464 19
11/8/2000 7 $264,426 -20.68% 2,130 $124 $25,986,890 20
11/9/2000 5 $351,543 +32.95% 2,130 $165 $26,338,433 21
11/10/2000 8 $776,000 +120.74% 2,005 $387 $27,114,000 22
11/11/2000 9 $993,000 +27.96% 2,005 $495 $28,107,000 23
11/12/2000 8 $737,000 -25.78% 2,005 $368 $29,363,880 24
11/13/2000 9 $159,891 -78.31% 2,005 $80 $29,523,771 25
11/14/2000 9 $203,297 +27.15% 2,005 $101 $29,727,068 26
11/15/2000 9 $171,105 -15.83% 2,005 $85 $29,898,173 27
11/16/2000 9 $172,493 +0.81% 2,005 $86 $30,070,666 28
11/19/2000 13 $267,000   1,415 $189 $31,146,175 31
11/20/2000 13 $74,873 -71.96% 1,415 $53 $31,221,048 32
11/21/2000 13 $116,620 +55.76% 1,415 $82 $31,337,668 33
11/27/2000 18 $26,498   602 $44 $32,085,657 39
11/28/2000 16 $32,877 +24.07% 602 $55 $32,118,534 40
11/29/2000 16 $32,349 -1.61% 602 $54 $32,150,883 41
11/30/2000 17 $30,485 -5.76% 602 $51 $32,181,368 42
12/3/2000 17 $80,000   531 $151 $32,549,288 45
12/4/2000 16 $27,789 -65.26% 531 $52 $32,577,077 46
12/5/2000 16 $34,661 +24.73% 531 $65 $32,611,738 47
12/6/2000 16 $30,120 -13.10% 531 $57 $32,641,858 48
12/7/2000 16 $31,218 +3.65% 531 $59 $32,673,076 49
1/15/2001 33 $25,335   226 $112 $33,161,987 88

Color coding:
= Weekend days (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
= Public Holidays (New Year's Day, July 4 etc.)

Updated rating tables