When I personally think of a Sam Raimi film, I think of The Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, or even the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movies (which all rock by the way). I really do not think of, or even knew about, a wildly mediocre crime thriller called A Simple Plan. This 1998 film is a passable drama that excellently revolves around a group of people and how they respond to their newly discovered riches but fails to really make itself stand out as a Raimi film. I was able to predict every plot point, understand every character's motivations with ease, and was not challenged in the slightest when it came to its plot. While I was vastly underwhelmed with how unmemorable this film was, there are lots of things to appreciate about it and it does prove to at least be competent. I really hate seeing incredible talent like Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton wasted but I suppose there are worse films they have been known for.
Hank (Bill Paxton), Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton), and Lou (Brent Briscoe) are three Minnesotans who are looking for Jacob's lost dog one day when they stumble upon a downed airplane full of cash. The three men decide to wait it out before they spend the $4 million but as more and more time passes, they find themselves struggling to remain loyal to themselves, each other, and they begin to spiral out of control. The script from Scott B. Smith, based on his own novel of the same name, is where I think many of this film's problems stem from. This story in itself is not at all boring, in fact, quite the opposite. I am certain that this familial and tense thriller plays out incredibly well on the page and in a long novel, I'm sure that the drama ramps up masterfully. However, I really do not think that A Simple Plan was meant to be adapted to screen because it took me forever to even get mildly invested in what it was trying to sell me. This script was chock full of mediocre dialogue, expected plot points, and little to no character development that ever even tried to make me care. It's not that I was frustrated with this film at all but I have seen this exact scenario countless times, even before 1998: men find money, men try to be smart about it, men fight over money, and then one man is left standing. The only difference in this story is that Smith did a decent job of making me care about the relationships between the people. The way that they were all connected leading to all of their downfalls was great and I really enjoyed seeing them turn on each other and take certain sides. My other main issue with this film was Raimi's direction. This is quite the ostracism compared to the rest of his movies and without his director credit, I honestly would not have been able to guess who helmed this story. It contained absolutely no traits of his previous outings that I would have been able to detect and I was severely let down by his contribution to this film. It was also far too long and an easy half an hour could have been cut out because of how its scenes were so repetitive and unnecessary.
Again, there is nothing objectively bad about this story, it's actually very interesting! I just wish that any semblance of originality could have surfaced to make this film anything more than a forgettable but serviceable thriller. Even though this is arguably one of Raimi's lesser films, there is a lot to love about it, including the cinematography, performances, and visual storytelling that bring the story altogether. The cinematography from Alar Kivilo was absolutely gorgeous and he brought a whole new light to this type of story that is rarely seen. Raimi's typical, quick pushes and pulls were evident and so much of his framing was astute that I was frequently surprised by what I was seeing. Kivilo makes this film stand out more than anyone else and he really elevates it from just another television drama into something genuinely cinematic. Although it might not be anything worth writing home about, he proves to be a fantastic addition to this movie's visual crew. A Simple Plan is constantly dramatic (at times, overly) and the tension that builds was great due to Raimi but the score from Danny Elfman really undercuts it all and skews it in directions that just did not make sense. Elfman is one of the most revered composers of all time and his work is undeniably beautiful, if only it were used in some other movie. The score was incredibly distracting and was far too cheerful for what this movie was trying to accomplish. This strange contrast made the whole movie feel much more cheesy than what I am sure Raimi was trying to accomplish and I just really do not think he was a good choice for this type of project. Despite some of its technical elements working against it, this film has some genuinely great performances from its lead cast. Paxton, Thornton, and Fonda (who plays Hank's wife Sarah) were outstanding and it was obvious how much care they put into their roles. They all enhanced this film and without their talents, it honestly would have been much more forgettable.
A Simple Plan is probably the weakest example of a Raimi film that one could choose out of his entire filmography but it is not bad in any sense of the word: just disappointing. I am glad that this film has so many redeeming aspects to prevent it from falling into the "bad" category but I was also definitely not that impressed. Nothing seems to come together very well and while the writing was predictable, Raimi's direction was also far too spacey to really attract my attention. I would recommend this movie for anyone looking for an easy and decently tense watch but really not for anyone looking to expand their horizons when it comes to groundbreaking filmmaking.
My Rating: ★★★
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