A Simple Plan

Play trailer

2:26

A Simple Plan

R

Released Sep 12, 1998

2h 1m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

76 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

While in the woods near their small town, upstanding local Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton), his dim brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton) and their friend Lou (Brent Briscoe) discover a crashed plane with two things in it -- a dead pilot, and a stash of more than four million dollars. Although Hank is reluctant to keep the money, Jacob and Lou convince him otherwise, and they devise a plan to split the fortune. Things quickly go wrong, however, dramatically affecting the trio and those around them.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

A Simple Plan is a riveting crime thriller full of emotional tension.

Read Critics Reviews

Sight & Sound

[Raimi] austerely rejects hyped-up camera tricks and jokey shock effects and creates living, complex characters whose fates we care about. The result is easily his finest film to date.

Jun 18, 2012

Full Review

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

A Simple Plan is lean, elegant, and emotionally complex - a marvel of backwoods classicism.

Rated: A

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Glenn Lovell

Variety

Perfect capers gone horribly, inexorably awry have always kept audiences squirming. But just when we think we've seen it all, Raimi offers a few new wrinkles.

Jul 22, 2008

Full Review

Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Sam Raimi at what is certainly his most understated and arguably his most overwhelming. It's a rabbit hole of ruination in rural America that complements "Se7en" as a reflection of the rot roiling beneath our surfaces and has lost none of its sting.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jan 16, 2025

Full Review

Emilie Black

Cinema Crazed

This is a strong neo-noir film with thriller elements and a whole lot going on for the it. The cinematography, the writing, the direction, the acting, the music, there is so much here that the film comes together perfectly.

Dec 28, 2024

Full Review

Jeff Beck

The Blu Spot

A Simple Plan takes the simple premise of three ordinary men finding a bag of money and turns it into a rather entertaining, compelling crime thriller that'll have you wondering what wild, over-the-top development could possibly happen next.

Rated: 3.5/5

Nov 18, 2024

Full Review

Read all reviews

Justin T

This is a fantastic story told very well. It is full of human drama, twists, deceit and excitement. The whole production has great value. It doesn't feel like anyone sold out making this film due to the high level of creative professionalism. The actors are very skilled and pick up subtle flavours that they use to convince the audience of the validity of the movie. Everything is so realistic and believable. This is not especially violent but there are one or two moments that shock, more because of the characterisation and not the imagery. The ending is very emotional. Well worth a watch for thriller fans.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/12/25

Full Review

Farah R

Bill Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton deliver stellar performances in what is arguably Sam Raimi’s best film. Despite being famous for his Horror and Superhero movies, Raimi created a brilliant crime thriller with poignant themes. The dull parts are easily ignorable when looking at A Simple Plan as a whole.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/05/25

Full Review

Olivia J

A Simple Plan takes the simple premise of three ordinary men finding a bag of money and turns it into a rather entertaining, compelling crime thriller that'll have you wondering what wild, over-the-top development could possibly happen next.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

05/02/25

Full Review

Steven W

Probably Sam Raimi's most overlooked film. A solid story filled with sinister twists complimented by fantastic performances from the cast. An absolute 90's gem

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/15/25

Full Review

Jonathan O

A cold blooded human drama thriller film. Is like Fargo meets Blood Simple in a Sam Raimi's vision and he did really outstanding directing and giving a horror a break and direct something different for the audience and he pull it off. And really great strong performances by Billy Bob Thornton and Bill Paxton (RIP) and is a Christmas and New Years film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/27/24

Full Review

Leaburn O

Really good drama thriller showing one lie digging ever deeper holes. Really good 90s stuff. Watched on BBC iPlayer.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/08/24

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Sam Raimi

Director

Bill Paxton

Hank Mitchell

Billy Bob Thornton

Jacob Mitchell

Brent Briscoe

Lou Chambers

Bridget Fonda

Sarah Mitchell

Jack Walsh

Tom Butler

Primal Fear

77%

89%

Primal Fear

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Primal Fear

The Talented Mr. Ripley

85%

80%

The Talented Mr. Ripley

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Talented Mr. Ripley

Jackie Brown

88%

85%

Jackie Brown

Watchlist

The Negotiator

74%

79%

The Negotiator

Watchlist

Hard Rain

34%

34%

Hard Rain

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

A Simple Plan: Trailer 1

2:26

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

While in the woods near their small town, upstanding local Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton), his dim brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton) and their friend Lou (Brent Briscoe) discover a crashed plane with two things in it -- a dead pilot, and a stash of more than four million dollars. Although Hank is reluctant to keep the money, Jacob and Lou convince him otherwise, and they devise a plan to split the fortune. Things quickly go wrong, however, dramatically affecting the trio and those around them.

Director: Sam Raimi
Producer: Adam Schroeder
Screenwriter: Scott B. Smith
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures, Mutual Film Company
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 12, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $16.3M
Runtime: 2h 1m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Most Popular at Home Now