THE AISLE SEAT - "A SIMPLE PLAN"
by Mike McGranaghan
The nature of evil is one of the most complex things imaginable. What makes a seemingly ordinary person do the unthinkable? How does someone cross the line from upstanding citizen to criminal? When Scott B. Smith published his debut novel "A Simple Plan" in 1993, it seemed perfect for a film adaptation. The story was a jolting, fast-paced thriller about a group of decent people who find themselves performing horrific acts of murder and betrayal. The book was hard to put down (I read it in a matter of days), and it worked because it seemed so plausible. You could really picture it happening like this.
After years of production delays, Smith's book has finally been turned into a skillfully executed film directed by Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead, Darkman). Bill Paxton plays Hank Mitchell, a well-liked man in a small Ohio town. Hank is by no means a wealthy man, but he has a home and a job and a pregnant wife named Sarah (Bridget Fonda). One afternoon, he is out for a ride with his intellectually-challenged brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton) and Jacob's friend Lou (Brent Briscoe). They swerve to avoid hitting an animal, and Jacob's dog jumps out of the truck to run after it. The three men wander into the woods in search of the dog when they discover a small plane that has crashed. The plane is covered with snow - it's been there a while - and no one seems to know about it. Hank goes inside and finds a bag with $4 million dollars in it.
The men debate about what to do with the cash. Hank wants to turn it in to the police. Jacob and Lou have another idea: since no one seems to be missing it - and since it's probably drug money anyway - they should keep it for themselves. Hank is hesitant, but the lure of the money is too much. He comes up with the simple plan referred to in the title. They will hold the money until spring comes and melts the snow. At that point, the plane will probably be found. If no one realizes the money is missing, they'll split it three ways. If someone does, they'll burn it and play dumb.
I hesitate to reveal Sarah's relevance to the plot, but she serves as an important device in setting the remaining events in motion. It soon becomes clear to Hank that secrets can not be kept, people can not be trusted, and drastic measures will have to be taken. The story continues to build tension as the characters become more and more entwined in their web of deceit. The screws are tightened all the way up to the final two minutes of the story, in which surprising ironies change the lives of the characters forever.
There isn't really anything new about the plot of A Simple Plan. There have been other movies about people who must make moral decisions after finding large sums of money (John Cusack's Money For Nothing springs instantly to mind). There have been other movies about good people driven to deadly lengths to cover up their mistakes (the recent Very Bad Things, for example). But what makes this film different is the same thing that made the book so chilling: it plays the story very realistically. It's not done as black comedy, or satire. It is presented as a "what would you do?" type of morality play.
At the beginning, you kind of understand why the decent Hank would want to keep the money. Fonda gives a great speech at one point about how much better their lives (and the life of their baby) would be with some extra financial security. Jacob, meanwhile, is a guy who has nothing. He is not particularly smart, he's never so much as kissed a girl, and no one cares about him except his brother. You can almost imagine yourself falling victim to the same temptations that these three people do. Then things turn ugly, and the characters realize that they will have to do some unconscionable things to avoid getting caught. Watching the film, you realize that split second decisions have to be made. And you ask yourself: what would I do if the only way to avoid spending the rest of my life in jail was to silence the person who could potentially reveal my secret? The questions are uncomfortable, which makes the film grab you by the heels and shake you.
So do the performances, which are authentic and three-dimensional. Paxton is a terrific character actor, but with this role, he proves he can carry a film. There's a scene near the end in which Hank has to do something he really doesn't want to do; the look of anguish on the actor's face still disturbs me when I think about it. Thornton is also very good as the self-loathing Jacob. With a bad haircut, broken eyeglasses and fake teeth, Thornton is almost unrecognizable. But instead of letting the props do the work, he creates a fully-developed, sympathetic character. And then there's Bridget Fonda, a very good actress who often gets stuck in roles that don't let her shine. Fonda has always had a sense of mischievousness right under the surface that serves her well in her best parts. It's a trait that is absolutely vital for Sarah. This is one of Fonda's best performances.
Director Raimi has always had an exuberant visual style, loading his films with camera tricks and exaggerated production design. This time, he plays it closer to the bone, giving the picture a raw quality that matches the story's air of desperation. A Simple Plan is a suspenseful, unnerving movie that ranks as one of the best thrillers in recent years. The plot and characters converge nicely, and by the end, you are left to wonder how much money is enough to entice you to sell your soul.
(
1/2 out of four)
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