A Simple Plan

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A Simple Plan
Directed by	Sam Raimi
Produced by	James Jacks Adam Schroeder Mark Gordon Gary Levinsohn
Screenplay by	Scott B. Smith
Based on	Novel: Scott B. Smith
Starring	Bill Paxton Billy Bob Thornton Bridget Fonda
Music by	Danny Elfman
Cinematography	Alar Kivilo
Editing by	Arthur Coburn
Studio	Savoy Pictures Mutual Film Company Renaissance Pictures The Mark Gordon Company
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	December 11, 1998 (1998-12-11)
Running time	121 minutes
Country	‹See Tfd› France United States
Language	English
Budget	$17 million[1]
Box office	$16,311,763 (US)

A Simple Plan is a 1998 drama film directed by Sam Raimi, based on the novel of the same name by Scott B. Smith, who also wrote the screenplay of the film. It was shot in Delano, Minnesota and Ashland and Saxon, Wisconsin. Billy Bob Thornton was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Scott Smith was nominated for the Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay.

Several prominent critics praised the film for its complexity and taut suspense (four stars from Roger Ebert and Critic's Choice from The New York Times).

Plot

Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton) lives with his pregnant wife, Sarah (Bridget Fonda) in rural Minnesota. Hank is one of the town's few residents to graduate from college He works in a feed mill, although the business is struggling. Sarah works as a librarian. Hank's brother, Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton), is a dim-witted but good-hearted fellow. The story begins with Hank, Jacob, and Jacob's friend, Lou (Brent Briscoe), chasing a fox into the woods. They lose the fox, but find a crashed airplane. The pilot is long dead and the only cargo is a bag full of unmarked bills totaling $4.4 million.

Hank's immediate response is to turn the money to the police as he feels that any other action would be stealing. He is persuaded not to by Jacob and Lou. Hank's condition is that he keep the money safe at his house and no one spends anything until winter ends and everyone moves away when they divvy up the cash. All agree to keep the discovery a secret. When they return to their vehicle, Carl, the sheriff, appears and Hank nervously talks to him. Hank is able not to arouse any suspicions during his conversation with Carl. When Jacob joins in the conversation however, he mentions hearing a plane in the area. Lou agrees to keep the money a secret from his wife. Hank makes the same promise. He immediately breaks the promise by confiding to Sarah, who is overjoyed.

Sarah later suggests to Hank to put some of the money back ($500K) in order to decrease the chances of getting caught. When Hank and Jacob return to the plane to put some of the money back in order to avoid suspicion, they come across an old man on a snowmobile. Jacob, thinking their cover is blown, bludgeons the man. When the man regains consciousness and asks for the police, Hank suffocates him and makes it look like an accidental death. Jacob reneges on his promise to move away during the summer, and tells of his intention to buy his father's farm with his share of the money. Hank tells Jacob that his plan is ridiculous as Jacob knows little about farming.

Lou shows up at Hank's house and drunkenly demands some of the money from Hank because he has spent recklessly since the discovery and needs cash fast. When Hank refuses, Lou threatens to tell the authorities about the old man's death. Later on, in the hospital, while Sarah is having her baby, she conspires with Hank to get Lou drunk and record him pretending to admit to have killed the man on the snowmobile. They go to Lou's house, and Hank and Jacob team up against Lou. After Lou "admits" to having killed the old man, Hank pulls out the tape-recorder and shows it to Lou. Lou, drunk and enraged that the two conspired against him, pulls a gun. Jacob kills Lou to save his brother, and then Hank kills Lou's wife when she appears, firing another gun. Hank concocts a plan as to what to tell the police to avoid arrest. The plan works, thanks to Hank's solid reputation in the community and Jacob's rehearsed speech to the police. Jacob tells Hank that this whole turn of events is wearing on him and that he "feels evil".

Later, the sheriff calls Hank and tells him that the FBI has arrived, looking for a downed plane that may have crashed in the area. Because Jacob mentioned a plane earlier, the sheriff asks the brothers to assist in the search of the woods. Sarah is immediately skeptical and discovers that the FBI man is actually involved with the money and is looking for his lost cash. Hank still goes with him in order to protect Carl, he brings a gun with him just in case. Then the sheriff, the FBI man, Hank and Jacob head into the woods. They find the plane, and the FBI man pulls a gun and kills the sheriff, revealing that he is looking for the lost money, and not with the FBI. The FBI man forces Hank inside of the plane to grab the money for him. Hank throws out the bag with the 500K. As the FBI person looks inside the bag, Hank pulls a gun on his head. Jacob and Hank manage to get the drop on the man, and Hank kills him. Hank starts to concoct another story to tell the authorities, but Jacob announces he doesn't want to live with these bad memories, and will shoot himself to end it. He encourages Hank to kill him instead and frame the FBI man, so that Hank can still tell any story he wants. After grappling with the decision, Hank kills Jacob, and starts sobbing.

At the police station, Hank tells his story to real FBI agents. As Sarah had predicted, no one would believe that this upstanding member of the community could be capable of such wrongdoing, and he is cleared of any crime. But he gets some unexpected bad news. The money in the plane is actually ransom money paid to kidnappers, and before it was delivered, one out of ten of the bills' serial numbers were written down to track the cash and find whoever was using it. Hank realizes he cannot use the money without fear of being caught. He goes home and burns all the money, with his wife struggling to stop him. Hank and Sarah go back to their old lives and Hank reflects on their losses.

Differences between the film and the novel

The screenplay made numerous changes to the plot, particularly to events in the second half of the novel. In the movie, after Lou and Nancy are killed, Hank does not kill Sonny or shoot Jacob; rather, he constructs a domestic dispute situation involving just Nancy and Lou, with him and Jacob walking in after Lou had killed Nancy.

Hank and Jacob's relationship is somewhat different. Though still not close, they have more affection for one another in the film than in the novel. Though in both the novel and the film, Jacob is a pathetic loser, in the film he is much kinder and considerate, while in the novel he is much more selfish and even scheming.

Lou in the film is married, while in the novel he lives with his girlfriend. Though spiteful and antagonistic towards Hank in both the novel and the film, in the novel Lou is notably more malicious, taking joy in ridiculing and bullying Hank.

While in the film Sarah still encourages several devious plans, in the novel she suggests that Hank murder Lou's neighbor, making her appear much more ruthless.

The film also changes Hank's reaction to finding out Baxter isn't an FBI agent. Rather than bolting, as he does in the novel, Hank stays with the plan realizing that if he leaves Baxter will kill Carl. Jacob also accompanies the crew. The result is a bloodbath, with only Hank surviving. Jacob is killed by Hank after Jacob threatens to commit suicide because he feels he can no longer live with what he's seen; Hank didn't want him to kill himself because which guns shot whom needed to align for his alibi. Hank's killing spree at the convenience store is also excluded from the film.

Cast

• Bill Paxton as Hank Mitchell
• Bridget Fonda as Sarah Mitchell
• Billy Bob Thornton as Jacob Mitchell
• Brent Briscoe as Lou Chambers
• Jack Walsh as Tom Butler
• Chelcie Ross as Sheriff Carl Jenkins
• Becky Ann Baker as Nancy Chambers
• Gary Cole as Neil Baxter
• Bob Davis as FBI Agent Renkins
• Peter Syvertsen as FBI Agent Freemont
• Tom Carey as Dwight Stephanson

Reception

A Simple Plan was met with critical acclaim, receiving a 90% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

References

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: A Simple Plan

• A Simple Plan at the Internet Movie Database
• Roger Ebert's Review
• New York Times review