Starring: Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Brent Briscoe & Bridget Fonda
Directed By: Sam Raimi

Sam Raimi director of the infamous Evil Dead series releases his latest film a unpredictable, clever thriller which is as much a thriller as it is an effective morality tale. Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series didn't do a lot for me, I enjoyed some of it but I have seen much better and funnier Horror movies in my time. Apart from the Evil Dead series he has not really made any films of note. His films like Darkman
and The Quick And The Dead are strictly mediocre productions, to me Raimi had nothing to be praised for until now.

A Simple Plan tells the story of three guys Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton),Hank (Bill Paxton) and Lou (Brent Briscoe) who discover four million dollars inside a crashed plane. Jacob and Hank are brothers and Lou is Jacob's good friend. Lou and Jacob against Hank's wishes eventually decide to take the money, Hank gives in and the three agree Hank well keep the money until they know it is safe to spend it.From the outset I thought this was going to be a hollow, predictable thriller in the style of the highly overrated and predictable Shallow Grave. To some degree a lot of what you'd expect will happen does. However there are also so many original and unexpected twists in this film which give it an edge over most predictable thrillers.

A Simple Plan is also not a highly stylised over the top, tongue and cheek film with two-dimensional characters like other thrillers of this kind can be. The excellent script by Scott Smith (based on his novel) has it's cake and eats it. This is a thriller with both believable, well fleshed out characters and a twisting, suspenseful and unpredictable storyline. The characters in this film are all well detailed and competently played out by a pretty good cast. Billy Bob Thornton gets the most colourful part as Jacob the slow-minded brother of the smart Hank. Thornton plays his role quite well though it is a hardly a subtle performance. Thornton's character of a dim wit is so obvious that the only thing he lacks to make it obvious he is not so smart is a dunce cap. Even so this is a minor qualm as Thornton despite the lack of subtly is effective in most scenes and he does have some great scenes. Hank and Lou are also realistic and memorable characters. Lou is a drunken loser who struggles with money while the seemingly nice Hank is capable of much more than expected. The fact that Hank and Jacob are brothers is also interesting and their relationship is a credible and great part of the film.

Sam Raimi should also be credited for the success of this movie as his direction is an invaluable asset. Raimi brilliantly creates a suspenseful and slowly engrossing film with many well directed tense
situations. Raimi is able to squeeze every drop of tenseness he can into those important scenes. Like Fargo Raimi also makes great use of his winter locations which add plenty of atmosphere and style to the film.

A Simple Plan is one of the best films of 1998 and one of the best thrillers of recent times. A Simple Plan sports memorable characters, a terrific script and one of the most satisfying and memorable
endings in the recent history of the thriller genre. A Simple Plan's denouement is up there with that of The Usual Suspects brilliant ending. A triumph that leaves other so called brilliant thrillers
for dust.

4 STARS