If you're craving a cold, tense crime drama to escape the summer heat, look no further than A Simple Plan, now streaming on MGM+. Directed by Sam Raimi and starring Billy Bob Thornton, this 1998 film is a masterclass in slow-burn suspense—and it scratches the same icy itch as the Coen Brothers' Fargo.
Thornton, who later brought his signature menace to the first season of FX's Fargo TV series, delivers one of his finest performances here. He plays Jacob, a simple man caught in a web of greed and paranoia after he and two others stumble upon a crashed plane filled with $4.4 million. What starts as a straightforward plan to keep the money quickly spirals into a nightmare of betrayal and violence.
A Chilling Premise That Echoes 'Fargo' and 'No Country for Old Men'
Like Fargo, A Simple Plan is set in a snow-covered Minnesota landscape, where the cold seeps into every frame. Raimi even consulted the Coen Brothers on how to shoot in the snow, ensuring the film feels just as bone-chilling. But while Fargo balances its violence with dark humor and a warm-hearted protagonist (Frances McDormand's Marge Gunderson), A Simple Plan is relentlessly bleak. There's no comic relief here—only escalating dread as the three men's trust crumbles.
The premise also echoes No Country for Old Men, another Coen Brothers classic: a fortune found in the wilderness leads to ruin. But where that story pits a man against a relentless hitman, A Simple Plan turns its characters against each other. The tension is deeply personal, especially between Jacob and his brother Hank (Bill Paxton), whose relationship is tested to the breaking point.
Why 'A Simple Plan' Stands Out in Sam Raimi's Filmography
Raimi is best known for his horror-comedy blend (Evil Dead II) and superhero camp (the Spider-Man trilogy), but A Simple Plan is his darkest, most cynical film. He strips away all humor to focus on the corrosive power of greed. The result is a taut, unpredictable thriller that earned Thornton a well-deserved Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
For fans of crime dramas like Tom Hardy's 'MobLand' or the morally complex world of 'Better Call Saul', A Simple Plan offers a similarly gripping exploration of how ordinary people descend into darkness. It's a film that rewards patience and attention, with every scene tightening the screws.
A Late-Night Double Feature with 'Fargo'
If you're looking for a double feature, pair A Simple Plan with Fargo. Both films share a wintry setting, a found-money premise, and a sense of inescapable doom. But where Fargo has heart, A Simple Plan has only cold, hard consequences. It's the perfect late-night watch for those who prefer their crime stories without a smile.
Stream it now on MGM+ and see why Billy Bob Thornton's performance remains one of the most chilling of the 1990s.
