Quotes

Dialogue

Chris Chandler: You want me to drive home in your car? Thorsen: No, I want you to take my car. Had a lot of luck lately. I don't need it. Chris Chandler: You're giving me a brand new Jaguar, and you don't want anything? Thorsen: I can prove it. Give me your card. Thorsen: I'll be in touch. Chris Chandler: Whoa, what is this? What, you want me to kill your wife or something? Thorsen: No. Tempting, but no. Call it generosity between two strangers. Eugene Simonet: Apparently, none of you have ever seen a new teacher before. [A beat.] I'm Mr. Simonet. Welcome to the seventh grade. Middle school. That hellish, shaky bridge you all must cross before you become members of that undyingly enviable high school elite. Now, some of you might think you can't get across this bridge fast enough. That you'd rather hold your breath, close your eyes, and not think about anything until it's all over. Well, I'm here to tell you that that is not an option in this class. Eugene Simonet: Lateness. Tardiness.

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: Sit down, I want to talk to you. Trevor McKinney: You want to lie to me.

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: Mr. Simonet? Eugene Simonet: Yes, I'm Eugene . . . Eugene Simonet: . . . uh, Simonet. [A beat.] Arlene McKinney: Hello. Eugene Simonet: Hello. [A beat.] Arlene McKinney: What is this assignment? Eugene Simonet: 'Scuse me? Arlene McKinney: What did you tell my son to make him bring a homeless man into my house? [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: Uh, I have two problems. One, I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about and two, I don't know who you are. Arlene McKinney: Arlene McKinney. My boy is in your social studies class. Trevor. Eugene Simonet: Trevor. He's very attentive. He's very, uh, exigent, which I like. [A beat. He notices some confusion on Arlene's face.] Exigent. It's challenging, testing - Arlene McKinney: I know what it means. Would you like to tell me why my kid brought a bum into my house? Eugene Simonet: I have no idea. Arlene McKinney: Bullshit. Eugene Simonet: Mrs. McKinney, I don't know how your son interpreted the assignment. Arlene McKinney: How do

Dialogue

Jerry: You ever been on the street? [A beat.] Arlene McKinney: My mom took us pretty close. Jerry: Well, you can't know. Not until you're looking at a dumpster. But when you climb into that thing for the first time, and you pull those newspapers over you, that's when you know that you've messed your life up. Somebody comes along like your son and gives me a leg up, I'll take it. Even from a kid, I'll take it.

Dialogue

Sean: I'm gonna put up this website in Chinese. It's gonna tell all the kids in China to jump up and down at the same time. [A beat. He heads back to his seat.] Eugene Simonet: [to Sean] The goal being to knock the earth off its axis? Sean: Yeah. Eugene Simonet: Thank you. Sit down, Sean. [Sean sits down, and the class laughs. Eugene addresses the class.] Well, you're ideas are as surprising as they are variegated. Add this to your list of words to look up this evening. But, I wanna focus one moment on one project we heard today. [A beat.] Because I've been teaching for many years, and it really is the first new idea that also requires an extreme active faith in the goodness of people. Trevor has made an attempt to interact with the world, and that was the assignment. And if I were an effusive person, given to easy praise, I would call that admirable.

Dialogue

Trevor McKinney: Were you just being nice? Eugene Simonet: About what? Trevor McKinney: About my idea. Do you think it's good, or were you just being teachery? Eugene Simonet: "Teachery"? Trevor McKinney: Bullshitting. Eugene Simonet: Do I strike you as someone falsely nice? Trevor McKinney: No. You're not even really all that nice. Eugene Simonet: Well, it was a slip-up, and it will not happen again.

Dialogue

Eugene Simonet: Okay. You know, I'm gonna have to consult my spirit guides here, because you tell me that Trevor is withholding from you, but you won't tell me anything specific, and you still want me to sit here and divine why. Arlene McKinney: "Divine why"? You always talk like that? Eugene Simonet: Yes. Arlene McKinney: You go to some big, fancy school? Eugene Simonet: Yes. Arlene McKinney: Think you could stop rubbing my nose in it?

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: I gotta take a shower. Trevor McKinney: No. What? Arlene McKinney: I smell horrible. Trevor McKinney: No you don't. No, you smell good. You smell like, uh, roses or something. Arlene McKinney: Let me just wash under my arms really quick - Arlene McKinney: Are you sure? Trevor McKinney: Yeah, yeah, I'm sure.

Dialogue

Thorsen: I thanked him and there were some very specific orifices in which I was told to shove my thanks. He told me, "Just pay it forward." Three big favors for three other people. That's it. Chris Chandler: So it's like a pass-it-on thing, then. Wait a minute. You and this lowlife are in this chain of do-gooders, some kind of Mother Theresa conga line? That's a little New-Agey for you, isn't it? Sort of Tibetan? What, are you in a cult? Thorsen: If you mention my name, you'll be selling your kidneys to pay for your lawsuit. Cult. Chris Chandler: Hey, the guy. What was the guy's name? Thorsen: [as he's walking away] Sorry, I'm late for my mass wedding.

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: Do you look down on me? Eugene Simonet: What? Arlene McKinney: Do you look down on me? Eugene Simonet: No. Arlene McKinney: 'Cause I don't talk like you. I haven't read the stuff you read. Eugene Simonet: What are you talking about? That's not pertinent, and you know it. Arlene McKinney: Don't talk to me like that! Eugene Simonet: Well, I'm sorry, but that's the way I talk, you know. Words are all I have. Arlene McKinney: Why? Why? 'Cause you think you look like shit? Is that it? I don't care about your burns, Eugene, if that's even what they are. Is that what they are? Eugene Simonet: Yes. Arlene McKinney: Okay, well, whatever happened to you, you look good to me. [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: You look good to me, too. Arlene McKinney: Okay. So? [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: So, I've never been here before. [A beat.] Arlene McKinney: Okay. So, you're scared. I'm scared, too. Listen. Bad things have happened to me, okay? I can't take my shirt off with a guy without five beers

Dialogue

Trevor McKinney: Is the world just shit? [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: No, it isn't. [A beat.] Hey, you did good work. Look at me. I'm proud of you, Trevor. I'm proud of you. [A beat.] And anyway, for what it's worth, I'm grading you on the effort, not the result. Trevor McKinney: I don't care about the grade. [He gets up. A beat.] I just wanted to see if the world would really change.

Dialogue

Eugene Simonet: Trevor! Trevor McKinney: It worked! Eugene Simonet: Oh, God! Eugene Simonet: Does he always get up this early? Arlene McKinney: What? Eugene Simonet: Oh my God! This is not good. He just saw me. Arlene McKinney: It's okay. Eugene Simonet: It's not. I'm his teacher. Trevor McKinney: Now, you have to pay it forward, too! Eugene? Eugene Simonet: I think you should still call me Mr. Simonet. Trevor McKinney: You had a sleepover, didn't you? Eugene Simonet: Why don't you go back to bed? Trevor McKinney: Why? Eugene Simonet: It's too early for you to be up, and I've got to get to school anyway. Trevor McKinney: No, it's not. It's no early. No, it's a Sunday. Eugene Simonet: It's a Sunday? Trevor McKinney: Yeah. Eugene Simonet: [to Arlene McKinney] It's a Sunday? Arlene McKinney: It's a Sunday. Trevor McKinney: So, stay. So, stay. My mom will make you breakfast. She makes great eggs. Eugene Simonet: No, I can't. You don't understand. I have a whole schedule that you don't know

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: I want you to understand. Eugene Simonet: Oh, it's not necessary. Really. No explanation required. Arlene McKinney: Wait. Please don't talk to me like that. We had 13 years in, Eugene. He's sober now. We've never been sober together. Eugene Simonet: Well, I wish you luck. Arlene McKinney: I - I feel like I gotta give him a chance. Eugene Simonet: A chance. A chance for what? Arlene McKinney: To change. To try to make up for lost time. Eugene Simonet: Oh, what? To take Trevor to some ball games? Do some real daddy things with him? Arlene McKinney: Yeah. He promised to try. What do you want me to do? Eugene Simonet: Oh, I don't know. Be smart. Arlene McKinney: He's his father, Eugene. Eugene Simonet: He impregnated you, Arlene. In what other way has he been a father to Trevor? Unless knocking somebody around is a new family value. Arlene McKinney: What are you talking about? He never touched Trevor. Eugene Simonet: Oh, that's right. Only you. He only took it out on you.

Dialogue

Jesus.

Dialogue

Arlene McKinney: Get out! Ricky McKinney: Huh? You know, I liked you a whole lot better when you had a few drinks in you! Ricky McKinney: You want me out of the house? I'm out! Arlene McKinney: [to Trevor McKinney] Sorry. [A beat.] I think I made a mistake. Trevor McKinney: Everybody makes mistakes.

Dialogue

Eugene Simonet: Trevor, what is it? [A beat.] Trevor McKinney: Are you still gonna pay it forward? [A beat.] You could say you don't have to. [Eugene gets up. A beat.] 'Cause it didn't work out. [A beat.] But I thought you still might. Eugene Simonet: Trevor, I would like more than anything than to do that for you. [A beat.] And when I find something worthy of paying it forward - Trevor McKinney: I know somebody who needs something. [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: Trevor, you have to let me find this on my own - Trevor McKinney: You know who it is. [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: Look. [A beat.] You don't understand everything. All right? So, you do not know what you're asking. Trevor McKinney: Give her another chance. [A beat.] Eugene Simonet: I will pay it forward. I promise you that. [A beat.] But I cannot do that. [He sits down in a desk near Trevor. A beat.] Trevor McKinney: But that's why this is the one. [A beat.] Because it's supposed to be something hard. [A beat.] If you help my mom, eve

Dialogue

Chris Chandler: Hi, I'm Chris Chandler, and I'm joined today by a very unusual seventh grader, Trevor McKinney. Trevor, you must be pretty proud of yourself. Trevor McKinney: No. Chris Chandler: So, you're not proud at all? [A beat.] Trevor McKinney: I don't know. I guess. Chris Chandler: Come on. You start a movement like Pay It Forward. You're not proud? Trevor McKinney: I guess. I mean, I - I got an A in Social Studies, but, uh, that was just for the effort. I mean, stuff I did, it didn't really work out. Chris Chandler: You're here. Trevor McKinney: Yeah, but . . . I don't know. I tried real hard, but . . . nothing really happened. [A beat.] My mom's stuff worked. She talked to my grandma. Kinda made up with her. It was really hard for her. It was great for me, 'cause my grandma came to my birthday party. And I had really missed her. [A beat.] And that's why Pay It Forward went all those places. 'Cause my mom. 'Cause she was so brave. My stuff, I . . . I don't know. I think some pe

Dialogue

Eugene Simonet: Arlene . . . I don't wanna be one of those people he's talking about. And I've become one. I don't wanna spend another second of wasted air. Please don't let me stay trapped in here forever. Arlene McKinney: I won't. Eugene Simonet: I don't wanna spend another second without you.

Dialogue

Trevor McKinney: It's hard. You can't plan it. You have . . . you have to watch people more. You know, sort of, sorta keep an eye on 'em. To protect 'em, 'cause . . . they can't always see what they need. [A beat.] It's - it's like your big chance to fix something that's not like your bike. [A beat.] You can fix a person. Chris Chandler: Is that what you want for your birthday? Everybody to pay it forward? Trevor McKinney: I can't ask for that. Chris Chandler: Sure, you can. Why not? [A beat.] Trevor McKinney: It wouldn't work. Chris Chandler: Why? [A beat.] Trevor McKinney: I already blew out my candles.