A Simple Plan

A Simple Plan

By

  • Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
  • Release Date: 1998-12-11
  • Runtime: 121 minutes
  • : 7.2
  • Production Company: Paramount Pictures
  • Production Country: United States of America
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7.2/10
7.2
From 914 Ratings

Description

Captivated by the lure of sudden wealth, the quiet rural lives of two brothers erupt into conflicts of greed, paranoia and distrust when over $4 million in cash is discovered at the remote site of a downed small airplane. Their simple plan to retain the money while avoiding detection opens a Pandora's box when the fear of getting caught triggers panicked behavior and leads to virulent consequences.

Trailer

Reviews

  • Wuchak

    8
    By Wuchak
    ***Bleak crime drama in the wintery Minnesota woods*** Two brothers & a friend from a small town in Minnesota (Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton and Brent Briscoe) happen upon a crashed plane in the woods, which contains over $4 million in cash. They assume it’s drug money and hatch a simple plan to sit on the money until spring when the plane is discovered; if no one legitimately claims it they’ll divvy it up. But things don’t go according to plan due to idiocy, mistrust and greed. Bridget Fonda is on hand as the main protagonist’s wife. Directed by Sam Raimi before his ultra-success with the Spider-Man trilogy, "A Simple Plan” (1998) was written by Scott B. Smith based on his page-turning book of the same name (there are enough changes to make both worthwhile). The wintery Minnesota setting is fitting for the bleak psychological drama. Speaking of which, the best thing about this movie is its exploration of human nature and how “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil,” as the Bible puts it. The movie effectively shows how basically good and normal people can be corrupted by the temptation of easy wealth; so corrupted that he or she is suddenly willing to murder, lie and connive. The story works so well because of the three well-defined characters. We’ve all met these types in real life: The wholesome, educated man who’s not quite living up to his potential and yet is generally satisfied; the loser, screw-up who’s never been with a girl even though he’s in his 40s; and the annoying redneck hick. The film runs 2 hours and was shot in Minnesota (Delano, St. Paul & Golden Valley) and Wisconsin (Ashland). GRADE: A-

  • CinemaSerf

    7
    By CinemaSerf
    Yikes, talk about money being the root of all evil! "Hank" (Bill Paxton), brother "Jacob" (Billy Bob Thornton) and their friend "Lou" (Brent Briscoe) are out hunting in the snowy wilderness when they discover the wreck of a plane. The pilot's corpse is still at the controls but they are more interested in the contents of a sports bag. It's got over $4m in it! What to do? Hand it in? Put it back? Keep it? Well the whole story is set against a backdrop of a less attractive American dream with a paucity of opportunity for any of these men. "Hank" will soon be a father and "Jacob" is determined to reclaim a family farm that was foreclosed upon years earlier. Decision made! Initially they are organised and disciplined. No splashing the cash, taking things responsibly and keeping under the radar - but gradually that disciple starts to crack. Not least because the expecting "Sarah" (Bridget Fonda) is conceivably even more determined to use the cash than the men who found it. Pressures begin to build, trusts begin to fray and some newspaper clippings inform them a little more of the likely source of their windfall. With the arrival of the FBI - well things turn sour on just about every level. It's Thornton who takes the plaudits here with an understated effort as probably the most principled of the men but all three work well together, with the increasingly Fonda stoking the fire, and though maybe just a little drastically far-fetched towards the end, this is quite a telling story of just what people might be prepared to do to better their lot. It's setting amidst the cold and darkness coupled with a rather benign small-town mentality (especially amongst local law enforcement) serves the scenario effectively as a sleepy town where nothing much ever happens starts to resemble something from an horror film. It's carefully written with little excess dialogue cluttering up a story of bad choices eliciting even worse ones, and is well worth a couple of hour.

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