A Simple Plan (1998)

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Originally Posted by Ambler  It could almost be a Coen bros. film. 

This. Such an incredible tense film. I think Thornton does a great job without going to far. Going to watch this tonight I think.

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Originally Posted by Ambler 

An underrated film if I ever saw one.  Made next to nothing at the box office, rarely discussed, and it's such a fucking great film.  I actually think Raimi's never been better.

 

The acting is superb from all involved, especially Paxton.  The characters do some incredibly stupefying things throughout the film, and if the acting wasn't so good, you'd be tempted to write the whole thing off.  Everyone brings such A-game.

 

Raimi was totally channeling his former roommates the Coen brothers here.  It could almost be a Coen bros. film.  I remember seeing it several times at the theater and wondering why nobody was going.  

Try the book since you liked the movie. Very faithful.

GREAT film.

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Originally Posted by Ambler 

An underrated film if I ever saw one.  Made next to nothing at the box office, rarely discussed, and it's such a fucking great film.  I actually think Raimi's never been better.

 

The acting is superb from all involved, especially Paxton.  The characters do some incredibly stupefying things throughout the film, and if the acting wasn't so good, you'd be tempted to write the whole thing off.  Everyone brings such A-game.

 

I'd probably say that Raimi's best might be The Gift but let's not quibble. 

I have to confess that the stupidity of the characters was so frustrating to me I almost turned off the movie at the 45 minute mark...."I can't stand it no more!"...but figured I'd give it a full hour; my wife said screw it and went to bed, and she left like 2 minutes before the movie turned and became utterly gripping. 

Don't get me wrong, the whole is great, but I think you need the borderline-annoying behavior of the first half to fully appreciate the ramp-up of the stakes and tension in the 2nd - everything leading up to it (and I can't remember the exact plot point) screams "THESE PEOPLE ARE SO FUCKING OVER THEIR HEADS JAMES CAMERON IS MOUNTING AN EXPEDITION TO FIND THEM"

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Originally Posted by Ambler 

I just showed to my parents and they also couldn't believe how stupid everyone was.  But they did enjoy it.

The characters being dumb and desperate and turning more and more to violence was part of the point. It's a great neo-noir.

I think this is a perfect example of the type of film people mean when they refer to a "great little movie." A bit forgotten and overlooked by the general public, but that kind of adds to its diamond-in-the-rough charm.

I agree that it has a very Coen Brothers vibe to it, but I'm also glad that Raimi didn't keep making more movies just like it (although the lack of success of this one probably accounted for that). I don't need Raimi to try and shape himself into a Coen Lite - they should do what they do best and so should Raimi.
 

Ya'll are puttin' on AIRS!!!

I JUST WANT SOME MUNNAY!

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Originally Posted by Sherman Davies 
 I don't need Raimi to try and shape himself into a Coen Lite - they should do what they do best and so should Raimi.

 

Based on the quality of the Evil Dead films, A Simple Plan/The Gift, the sweeping romance of For Love of the Game, and the CGI-blockbusterhood of the Spider-Man franchise, I would think it's pretty apparent that Raimi does all sorts of things well. 

I was cold on this when I first saw it. Probably had some built-in resentment - Raimi did a good job with the suspense sequences, but how many times have we seen mild-mannered people find a box of money? I liked how the tension built, and the performances were sharp, but then Gary Cole's character showed up at the end, and I thought that was some pretty unnecessary external conflict added in.

Due for a rewatch though. I did dig the ridiculous shotgun blast scene.

Gripping little neo noir, as someone already mentioned.  Love the morality play, where nobody really seems to be the moral center.  You think it's Bridget Fonda, and then... 

Paxton is great in this, but the acting prizes belong to Billy Bob here.  He brings a nobility to his loser/idiot, who knows he's a loser/idiot, and makes what could have been A Simple Buffoon into a real person, with genuine emotions and motivations. 

To add to the Coen/Raimi talk, I've always thought this makes a good companion piece to No Country for Old Men.

And I DID see this at a theater.  Nobody might have been going because it was a limited release, IIRC.  At least here in Indy, it was only playing on one, maybe two screens. 

Bumping the thread, because I just rewatched this movie and wanted to ask: can anyone who has read the book please tell me what happens to the Hank and Jacob characters at the end of it? All I know is, it's apparently a much "darker" conclusion than the film...

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Originally Posted by bowser 

MUCH darker. Do yourself a favor and read the book. You'll be sick to your stomach by the end of it. Very dark.

Can you just go ahead and spoil it here? I Googled it and I couldn't find the ending.

Of course, the book is far better than the movie but this is certainly an underrated classic. Thanks for reminding me!