Pay it Forward – Character Representations
10 Tuesday Mar 2009
Written by Josh Lipovetsky in Film Analysis
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Pay it Forward is a movie about society, and what each of us can do to improve it. Each character represents many different life lessons, and here are a few of them. Trevor represents giving, Eugene Simonet represents fear, Arlene represents desperation, Chris Chandler (Reporter) represents curiosity, and the stranger named Mr. Thorsen represents kindness.
Trevor McKinney had a very absorbent mind. He was ready to listen to anyone. Fortunately, the right person came along to guide him. Mr. Simonet gave him an assignment to change the world. Trevor created a unique concept called ‘Pay it Forward’. It consists of doing a large favor for 3 different people, and like a pyramid, spreading the word to each of them to do favors for 3 other strangers. Many people can think about doing something like this, but Trevor actually does it. It shows how truly giving he was. Under the toughest of circumstances, Trevor focused on helping others, and that is why he represented giving.
Eugene Simonet, Trevor’s Social Studies teacher, had great intentions for the world. He gave his class an assignment that involved changing the world for the better, but perhaps because of fear of doing it himself. In his relationship with Arlene, he showed great fear almost all of the time. This was due to his inability to let go of his past. It took drastic measures for Eugene Simonet to release his fear.
Arlene McKinney represented desperation. Most of her acts were done desperately, hoping for a better future. She worked 2 “informal” jobs, just to support Trevor and herself after her ex husband Ricky left her. When Ricky came back into her life, she took him back, because she was hoping for a return to normalcy. She preferred certainty in a bad relationship over uncertainty in a good relationship. Of course, this would change by the end of the movie.
Chris Chandler was a very inquisitive reporter. He represented curiosity, because he was willing to drive a long distance, just to find out information about a story. A story that will not make him any money. Chris was a very proactive person, only needing his own approval to take a certain action. His curiosity drove him to commit a good deed.
Finally, the stranger named Mr. Thorsen represented kindness. He gave his brand new Jaguar to Chris, just to pay it forward. A bit unrealistic, yes, but a great action to represent kindness. Being kind usually starts a positive chain reaction, and this kind deed by a stranger caused Chris to heighten his sense of curiosity about the ‘Pay it Forward’ situation.
If you are a fan of truly inspiring movies, then I am sure that “Pay it Forward” has a chance to be on your top movies list. Each character represents so many ideas, making it a very special movie. Although quite sad, “Pay it Forward” is sure to contain great life lessons for everyone.
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10 comments
March 14, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Hey, great review! This will be the next movie I watch
your descriptions are superb and sophisticated.
March 15, 2009 at 11:39 am
Hey Ryan, thanks for the comment, I really appreciate the kind words! I hope you enjoy the movie. By the way, if you read the “ABOUT” section, you will see a spoiler warning. Just letting you know for your own sake, that a lot of spoilers are in these articles. I really don’t like ruining movies, so take caution
. I love the avatar of Luigi, looks awesome!
March 17, 2009 at 6:35 am
Great review Josh! Deep and wise analysis.
Just one remark from my side: it’s not only a great movie, there’s much more to it. If you’ve watched it, you just couldn’t stay cool at the final act… it hits you hard with a wave of emotions and heavy thoughts which with some inexplicable force change your perception of life, perhaps only for a while, but even that means that the message has been delivered to you!.. But what will you actually do when you get that message? Don’t be just a watcher, don’t let that positive impulse fade away, do something on your own, be a part of this chain… of course it doesn’t have to be only 3 people, and if you fail to see that your deeds spread further through the recipient, don’t give up, keep looking for people who desperately need help. And help’em. That’s it.
Josh, thanks again. I hope people who haven’t seen this movie will appreciate your comments and find time to watch it, and who knows, maybe go even further.
And many thanks to Mimi Leder, for making such a magnificent inspirational movie.
March 17, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Thanks Irakli for the amazing comment. As for the ending, I thought it was very emotionally moving, but extremely sad. I was so upset that they ended the movie like that, because Pay it Forward defied the law of karma. Bad things like that should not happen to someone like Trevor. But it was very moving. I also consider myself a very inspirational person. I love inspiring people at the hospital that I go to. They do not expect a patient with my condition to be smiling and making jokes all the time. I try my best to improve the lives of everyone around me, to the best of my ability. I guess you could say I put others ahead of myself, because that is what I like to do.
May 27, 2009 at 7:57 pm
Very nice review. The film is absolutely terrible but it does have a great message. Owell, most films are a give-and-take.
June 28, 2009 at 6:18 am
the film was perfect and a wonderful and special when Trevor comes up with his idea and for me it was a very exciting thing for changing the world ,but unfortunately the end was extremely sad .Trevor was the best child i saw in the world i hope all the children thought like him and thank you for the good analys
May 20, 2010 at 10:00 am
Just saw the movie Love It
December 3, 2010 at 3:09 pm
the movie is a nice one…but it pains me so much to see it end tragically…
January 15, 2011 at 4:36 pm
Hey Josh. Your review was awsome. ‘Pay it forward’ is one of the best movies i’ve seen. i’ve watched it several time. the last one was yesterday when our professor showed it to us. then i stumbled uppon your review. it was really sophisticated and nice.
January 8, 2013 at 5:38 am
very nice story , this movie is very touching to me.