Sam Raimi has given us several memorable films throughout his four-decade career, including The Evil Dead trilogy (1981–1992), The Spider-Man trilogy (2002–2007), Darkman (1990), etc. However, his 1998 film, A Simple Plan, which I still regard as his finest work and one of the best neo-noirs of the 1990s, remains my favorite.
The story takes place during one cold winter in Minnesota, where Hank (Bill Paxton) works as a bookkeeper at a feed mill and is one of the few college graduates in town. He is married to Sarah (Bridget Fonda), a librarian who is eight months pregnant, and they lead a reasonably decent life together. On a snowy day, while Hank goes to pay a visit to his father’s grave with his older brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton), who has learning disabilities, and the town drunk, Lou (Brent Briscoe), they stumble upon a crashed plane. Inside, they discover a bag worth $4.4 million. Initially, Hank freaks out and suggests turning the money to the cops, but Jacob and Lou persuade him to do otherwise. Hank reluctantly agrees, but only on the condition that he gets to keep the money until the snow melts and the plane is discovered. By that point, if no one detects the missing cash, they will divide it amongst themselves and leave town. But things don’t go according to plan as the three men begin to question each other’s trust, which leads to betrayal, lies, and murder.
Based on the 1993 novel of the same name, written by Scott Smith (who also wrote the film’s screenplay), A Simple Plan contains a taut script that never lets you off the hook, even for a minute. Once the trio discovers the cash, they encounter increasingly tense situations, with each one bringing them closer to capture and making the viewers continually anxious. The first situation is that of a farmer named Dwight Stephenson (Tom Carey). There is an exceptionally well-directed sequence in the snow in which Hank and Jacob are almost caught red-handed by Dwight, which forces them to kill him and make it look like an accident. The second situation unfolds when Lou, the most volatile of the three, storms into Hank’s house one night drunk, demands his cut, and blackmails Hank into telling the truth about Dwight’s death. As a result, Sarah suggests that Hank take the two (Lou and Jacob) out for drinks and trick Lou into confessing to the murder to get out of the situation. Hank entices Jacob into the plan by pledging to assist him in reclaiming the family farm, which Jacob desperately desires. As a result, the three get drunk and go to Lou’s place in one of the best scenes in the film. Here, the creators deftly use Jacob’s dilemma to heighten tension; he is torn between wanting to regain control of his family’s property and betraying Lou, whom he regards as more of a brother than Hank. The third situation involves Baxter (Gary Cole), an FBI agent who arrives in town to investigate the missing plane. But Sarah doubts his identity and fears he is after the money, putting Hank’s life in danger. Each situation puts Hank and Jacob’s lives in greater peril, which never slows the film’s tempo and keeps viewers engaged.
In the same vein as numerous other films, like The Treasure of Sierra Madre (1948), There Will Be Blood (2007), Fargo (1996), No Country for Old Men (2007), and many more, A Simple Plan also explores the theme of greed in great detail. The film illustrates how even the most benevolent or law-abiding person is susceptible to greed. When someone gets a glimmer of hope of having something they never had, the fear of losing it causes them to become avaricious and do things they have never done. Take Sarah’s example. There is a scene in which Hank comes home with a bag of stolen cash and asks her what she will do if she comes across millions of dollars. She confidently replies that she would never keep it and give it to the authorities. But when Sarah sees the cash, her eyes light up. Her attitude begins to change as she fantasizes about the future and the comforts that money can buy, increasing her fear of losing it all. Consequently, she is prepared to employ any means necessary to retain the money, including advising Hank to return to the crash site and leave a portion of the stolen cash ($500,000) inside the plane to avoid suspicion or trick Lou into confessing to killing Stephenson. The film also emphasizes that greed has no bounds and manifests itself in people of all socioeconomic backgrounds and educational levels. Hank is an educated guy but probably the greediest of the three men. Sure, Lou wants money to pay his debts, and Jacob wants to reclaim his family farm, but Hank gets several chances in the film to distance himself from the chaos, but he doesn’t. As a result, he constantly finds himself in trouble and engages in criminal behavior to safeguard the money.
Additionally, the film benefits from each character’s rich and layered characterization, and all the actors execute their respective roles exceedingly well. Bill Paxton is brilliant as an educated family man who leads a decent life but succumbs to the desire to become rich using shortcuts, which he must pay a heavy price for. Bridget Fonda plays Sarah, a femme fatale-esque character who operates in the background and develops a pathological preoccupation with money. Her acting chops are on full display in a scene in which Hank tries to get rid of the cash, but she stops him and tells him, with wide eyes and a straight face, how vital the money is for their future, their newborn baby, and herself. It’s a spectacular performance. But Billy Bob Thornton’s performance takes the cake as Jacob, who has seen nothing but failure and sadness throughout his life. In one scene (which would have gotten Thornton an Oscar nomination), he tells Hank of his desire to experience happiness rather than loneliness for a change. He also hopes to fall in love once, start a family, and live on the family farm. He believes the money could provide an ideal solution for his problems and bring him joy. You can’t help but cry while watching Thornton perform this gut-wrenching scene flawlessly.
A simple plan movie links: IMDB, Letterboxd
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