A Simple Plan (1998)

Captivated by the lure of sudden wealth, the quiet rural lives of two brothers (Paxton, Thornton) erupt into conflicts of greed, paranoia and distrust when over four million dollars in cash is discovered at the remote site of a downed small airplane. (Paramount Pictures)
Cast and Information
Directed By: Sam Raimi
Written By: Scott B. Smith
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Gary Cole, Bill Paxton, Bridget Fonda, Chelcie Ross, Brent Briscoe, John Paxton, Becky Ann Baker, Tom Carey, Jack Walsh, Bob Davis, Peter Syvertsen
Genres: Drama, Suspense/Thriller, Crime
Country: France, Germany, Japan, UK, USA
Where to Stream
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A Simple Plan belongs to 31 collections
1. Neo-noir (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 28 stars)
2. IMDb Top 250 Complete (collaborative: moderated by Jorg - 23 stars)
3. Academy Award - Oscar - ALL Best Picture, Directing, Acting & Screenplay Nominees (collaborative - 22 stars)
4. They Shoot Pictures' Recommended Viewing (collaborative: moderated by Cinephile - 19 stars)
5. Edgar Wright 1000 Favorite Movies (Aug 2016) (collaborative: moderated by Aron Ericson - 16 stars)
6. They Shoot Pictures Neo-Noir (Post-1964) (public: TychoCelchuu - 15 stars)
7. Films available in HD (collaborative: moderated by kubricksucks - 13 stars)
8. The Gentlemen's Guide To Midnight Cinema Podcast (collaborative: moderated by Coheed - 9 stars)
9. 1,000 Noir Films: They Shot Dark Pictures, Didn't They? (collaborative: moderated by lisa- - 9 stars)
10. Lots 'n Lots of Snow (collaborative: moderated by iceblox - 7 stars)
11. Skandies (collaborative: moderated by toro913 - 7 stars)
12. Best by different standards (public: sesito71 - 6 stars)
13. Brothers (collaborative: moderated by djross - 5 stars)
14. Classic CHUD: 100 Movies That Deserve More Love (collaborative: moderated by tinysausage - 5 stars)
15. Top 3000 movies with the most votes on IMDb (public: fanfic - 5 stars)
16. Paste Magazine: The 100 Best Film Noirs of All Time (public: TychoCelchuu - 2 stars)
17. Danny Elfman (composer) (collaborative: moderated by Pickpocket - 1 star)
18. criticker's underrated (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 1 star)
19. Minnesota (collaborative: moderated by Bojangles - 1 star)
20. gork movies to get (public: gork - 1 star)
21. 1998: Year in Review (public: polanski28 - 1 star)
22. Ratings (collaborative: moderated by cheapthrills)
23. polisiye (collaborative: moderated by ceseth)
24. DtC Doubling the Canon 2021 Nominees (collaborative: moderated by lineuphere)
25. Pendientes (public: juglar103)
26. Ununnilium Top 100 (public: Ununnilium)
27. Films I watched in 2011 (public: jal90)
28. Peliculas que tengo (public: escarta)
29. 90lar (public: Ozancan)
30. Edgar Wright's 1000 Favorite Movies (public: coldesser)
31. REWATCH (public: AFlickering)
Browse the full list of collections
Stars | User | Rating | |
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Paxton | 70 63rd |
What is Bill Paxton's life like? Everything is always falling apart around him. If it's not aliens or tornadoes, it's his neighbors or his family. The most serene the man has ever been is when he's listening to a story about the deaths of over a thousand people on a boat.
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Duke | 75 44th |
It's a good, thrilling film until to the last scene by the plane then it turns up to be a dramatic one. The plot does not seem to be much promising but with the good acting and Sam Raimi's directing it is worth seeing. And Billy Bob Thornton is excellent once again. note to myself: If a man with a shotgun enters your kitchen in the middle of the night don't try to shoot him... or just don't miss. And by the way if you find 4 mil. dollars don't tell it to your wife.
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PeaceAnarchy | 69 23rd |
I really wanted to like this more, but I can't stand characters who do stupid things, and all of the film's tension revolves around bad decision after bad decision. That aside, it is a pretty good movie.
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frederic_g54 | 8 77th |
I lost interest after the 1st act because of how they stretched the story out, rather uninteresting and predictable, but it redeemed itself towards the end (loved the ending). I really liked Paxton here, the performances carry this film, especially Thornton, who's excellent and hilarious at times. An effective and ingenious thriller, it also features one of funniest death scenes ever, one word: shotgun...
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MJVmovieMan | 90 93rd |
An unbelievably effective small-scale thriller. Everything here flows so brilliantly; the cast works well, and you really get into Paxton's increasing-dilemma.
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Luna6ix | 74 48th |
By the point that "A Simple Plan" came out, Raimi had more than a decade of friendship with the Coens, so it comes as no surprise that he tried to emulate their most acclaimed work so fargo--I mean far. The issue is that this is a less effective snowy crime thriller and Raimi just isn't in his element when there aren't demonic possessions to be had. This once is decent, but I wouldn't fargo so fargo as to say you couldn't forego seeing it, maybe just watch "Fargo" instead.
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spleen | 89 93rd |
Iechouxi compares this movie to Macbeth. While I agree with that, I see it as an extended episode of "I Love Lucy", except instead of chocolates on a conveyor belt, it's a bag of money. And instead of Ricky's club, it's a downed plane. And instead of Little Ricky, it's a snowmobile. SPOILER ALERT: Lucy shoots Mrs. McGillicuddy in the kitchen and Ethel, distraught over never losing her virginity, kills herself after gunning down Fred, who's posing as an FBI agent.
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1 | Mikul | 90 88th |
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Exactly what film noir should be and a visual pleasure. Sam Raimi is a really good director with a great range: Spiderman, Evil Dead, and this jewel.
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Kojiless | 84 88th |
Teaches us that just when we think nothing else can go wrong, something else goes wrong, thus proving us wrong in our first assumption, and forcing us into another decision that will probably end up going wrong as well.
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Stain | 80 68th |
A really interesting and original kind of crime thriller. Hats off to Sam Raimi for doing such a neat little movie after he "hit the big time"
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ubermensch | 88 63rd |
sam raimi knows what he's doing. excellent neo-noir.
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eric-jan | 60 13th |
Great acting by Billy Bob Thornton. The story is very predictable and oddly enough the stay-at-home-mom seems to be the driving factor for all the action that takes place.. THIS MOVIE IS AVERAGE AT BEST
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kingofjew | 81 88th |
Sam Raimis thriller is a gorgeous film, better executed than his other thriller attempts ( see: the gift) . The movie works on all levels. Good pacing ,acting and a solid script make a good thriller, tho the story tends to get a bit predictable.
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thegreyfox | 59 28th |
I kept expecting this to be funny, because frankly it was totally unbelievable as an actual thriller meant to be taken seriously.... it couldnt possible be "just a thriller" could it ? Yep, apparently it was. Ludicrous. We are supposed to believe that ... oh, heck no spoilers!. On the plus side, it was well acted although Paxtons wimpy persona was annoying. Thorton was excellent. A "What would YOU do in this situation" movie ... well, definitely not what these idiots decided to do !
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Trooth | 79 80th |
It's kind of like Fargo meets Mystic River. Watching this after the Spider-Man and Evil Dead series, I was a little skeptical about it, but it convinced me that Sam Raimi can pretty much make any movie. The actors do a great job, especially Billy Bob Thornton, and there's a fantastic sense of tension throughout nearly the entire movie, mounting throughout every scene.
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anilscn | 47 39th |
dünyada olabilecek tüm mantık hatalarını kendinde toplamış bir film. eğlendim mi? dibine kadar. atmosfer filmin içine hapsetti adeta. billy'nin oynadığı karaktere de acaip sempati besledim. belki de bu kadar saçmalık dolu bir filme verdiğim en yüksek puandır. ama bana sakın koyu yeşil puanlarla gelmeyin. sakınnn
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ADragon91 | 85 92nd |
Pretty awesome film by Sam Raimi that is fairly different from what he usually does. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this. The performances of Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton were excellent and the film gives these characters moral dilemmas and decisions that are both rational and irrational. There's a Fargo-esque quality to it that shines and the pacing is just right. By the end, there are huge consequences. For a straight-up Crime Thriller, this is a film more people need to see.
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Average Percentile 61.29% from 2061 Ratings | ![]() |