Movie · 1998 · Crime, Drama, Thriller · 2h 1m · R · English
Curator score: 8.0/10 (147.9K ratings)
Sometimes good people do evil things.
Overview
Captivated by the lure of sudden wealth, the quiet rural lives of two brothers erupt into conflicts of greed, paranoia and distrust when over $4 million in cash is discovered at the remote site of a downed small airplane. Their simple plan to retain the money while avoiding detection opens a Pandora's box when the fear of getting caught triggers panicked behavior and leads to virulent consequences.
Ratings
Curator score: 8.0/10
IMDb: 7.5/10
Letterboxd: 3.87/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
Metacritic: 81
TMDB: 7.2/10
Director
Sam Raimi
Production
Paramount Pictures, Mutual Film Company, Savoy Pictures, BBC, Marubeni, Tele München
Cast
Billy Bob Thornton, Bill Paxton, Bridget Fonda, Brent Briscoe, Jack Walsh, Chelcie Ross, Becky Ann Baker, Gary Cole, Bob Davis, Peter Syvertsen, Tom Carey, John Paxton, Marie Mathay, Paul Magers, Joan Steffend, Jill Sayre, Wayne A. Evenson, Tim Storms, Terry Hempleman, Jay Gjernes
Where to watch
Amazon Prime Video, MGM Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A bleak, tightly wound crime thriller about ordinary people being poisoned by greed and panic. It’s especially strong as a slow-burn descent into bad decisions, with a cold Midwestern atmosphere and a devastating ending.
Best for
fans of grounded crime dramas
viewers who like moral-collapse stories
people drawn to wintery neo-noir tension
audiences who appreciate tragic, character-driven thrillers
Skip if
you want a fast, flashy heist movie
you dislike characters making increasingly terrible choices
you prefer crime stories with clean moral lines
you need a lighter or more entertaining tone
Overview
A Simple Plan is one of those crime films that starts with a fantasy and ends with a funeral for everyone’s conscience. What makes it so effective is how ordinary the people feel before the money appears; the movie understands that greed is most frightening when it grows out of frustration, debt, and small-town desperation rather than grand criminal ambition.
Worth noting
Sam Raimi keeps the film controlled and unsentimental, letting the pressure build through silence, snow, and suspicion. The result is a cold, corrosive thriller where every “simple” choice becomes a trap. It’s not just about finding money; it’s about what happens when fear convinces decent people they can outsmart consequence.
Bottom line
The performances sell the tragedy, especially as the brothers’ bond curdles into mistrust. By the final stretch, the movie has fully committed to its bleak logic, and the ending lands with real force. It’s a smart, punishing, and quietly unforgettable piece of 90s American noir.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Sean Fennessey (4.5★) · 1725 likes
Arguably the greatest American film about being a fucking dumbass.
Patrick Willems (4.5★) · 1439 likes
This is one of the best movies of the 90s and we don't talk about it nearly enough.
David Sims (4.5★) · 952 likes
bridget fonda as a hot librarian with bangs???? hello
nathaxnne [goodbye <3] (5★) · 841 likes
There's a stark, corrosive sadness seeping through A Simple Plan like blood freezing in snow. Upper Midwestern Noir so black and so cold that it could take digits off extremities without any the wiser. The spectre looming above, behind it all is economic collapse: foreclosure, unemployment, neurological difficulty, isolation, loneliness. The people of A Simple Plan are presented directly, warmly, without irony or condescension, so that when the bad stuff starts going around, it hurts and it keeps hurting, a… more There's a stark, corrosive sadness seeping through A Simple Plan like blood freezing in snow. Upper Midwestern Noir so black and so cold that it could take digits off extremities without any the wiser. The spectre looming above, behind it all is economic collapse: foreclosure, unemployment, neurological difficulty, isolation, loneliness. The people of A Simple Plan are presented directly, warmly, without irony or condescension, so that when the bad stuff starts going around, it hurts and it keeps hurting, a… more
Joe (5★) · 732 likes
This is a perfect movie, zero false notes, suspenseful and tragic, and even though it's usually touted as a showcase for Billy Bob Thornton it wouldn't work nearly as well without Paxton, who conveys his character's descent into evil with a level of credibility that's normally taboo in mainstream entertainment. There's no hidden arrogance inside him that leads him to a life of crime, no sociopathic tendencies that comfortably remove him from audience identification, and it's Paxton's innate decency as an actor that makes this descent so heart-wrenching.
2007 · Crime, Thriller, Western · 2h 2m · R · Curator 9.6/10 (3.1M ratings) · Where to watch: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, MGM Plus, Philo
For viewers who want a colder, more existential crime story where chance, fear, and violence overwhelm human plans.