SAM RAIMI’S A SIMPLE PLAN — A REVIEW BY NICK CLEMENT

Make no mistake: A Simple Plan is the best film that Sam Raimi has ever made. It’s his most complete, his most human, his most emotionally affecting. This film has ice water running through its veins. I’ve seen it easily 10 times and it never fails to raise the hairs along the back of my neck, and because of how deadly serious the film is, nothing is played for laughs or with a sly smirk. What would you do if you found a ton of money in a crashed airplane in the middle of the snowy woods, with seemingly nobody around to see you make your discovery? That’s the dangerous and potentially lethal scenario posed by Scott B. Smith’s brilliant screenplay (which was based on his novel), which takes on Shakespearean levels of familial tragedy. Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton were perfectly cast as Minnesota brothers, desperate for one big stroke of luck in their otherwise unremarkable lives, and Bridget Fonda was absolutely terrific as Paxton’s too-clever wife who might just be the smartest person in the room. The cinematography sends a chill down your spine, the snow vistas are shot with cutting simplicity, and the lack of nonsense in the final act truly elevates this film from standard genre piece to something more powerful and memorable.

I’d love to see Raimi return the neo-noir genre, as this film was aced from top to bottom, and displayed a maturity that he would seemingly abandon in future efforts. Danny Elfman’s creepy musical score was unsettling in all the right moments (love the piece of music that plays over the opening credits), and cinematographer Alar Kivilo made the most out the wintry, desolate locations, using bright daylight in a way that you normally don’t see in a thriller, with visual nods to In Cold Blood strewn all throughout. There’s also a ton of snow in this movie, and I love movies that take place in snowy environments. Gary Cole turns up as the villain in an extremely memorable performance. At one point, Mike Nichols was set to direct, before Ben Stiller became interested, which then lead to John Dahl becoming attached with Nicolas Cage in the Paxton role, only to have John Boorman temporarily replace him as a potential director (Boorman would be responsible for casting Paxton and Thornton). Despite grossing only $16 million at the American box office, the film was nominated for two Oscars (Best Supporting Actor, Billy Bob Thornton; Best Adapted Screenplay), and has most certainly taken on cult classic status. A Region A Blu-ray upgrade is long overdue, but for those with Region Free players, there’s a spiffy looking German Blu-ray available to own.