A Simple Plan

(Paramount)

Set in Minnesota, A Simple Plan finds a pair of brothers, respectable Hank (Bill Paxton) and jobless, crack-brained Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton), Hank's wife, Sarah (Bridget Fonda) and Jacob's disreputable buddy Lou (Brent Briscoe) stumbling across a downed airplane with $4 million and, of course, fighting over the money. At its best, Sam Raimi's adaptation of Scott B. Smith's bestselling thriller evokes the bleak gothic misanthropy of Flannery O'Connor, a breath of melancholy cooling its most blood-curdling moments.