A Simple Plan

Rating:
Summary: A gripping depiction of our darker side
Review: When I began this novel, I already had an inkling of what the trajectory of the plot would be, based upon the information on the book jacket. It's no secret that the story revolves around what unfolds when three men accidentally stumble upon a plane that has crashed with millions of dollars in cash on board. The bulk of the book explores the grim consequences of this discovery. Despite the generally predictable and even formulaic nature of the plot overall, Smith has done an amazingly skillful job of creating a page-turner of a suspense novel that is nearly impossible to put down. The particulars of just how things go awry for the various principals involved are spun out in ingenious fashion over several hundred extremely well-written pages.

This book not only tells a gripping (and sometimes gory) tale of how a seemingly "simple plan" goes awry, it also provides clear insight into the darker side of the human condition, that is, how under particular circumstances even seemingly "nice, normal people" can end up committing and rationalizing the most heinous deeds, always with "good reasons" behind their actions. The way that Smith lays bare the fragility of human ethics and morals sadly rings true, and renders the book as depressing as it is horrifying and suspenseful. Overall, it's a terrific read that should not be missed.

Rating:
Summary: Dangerous Story
Review: I really liked this book until the end. This book is among the most literary contemporary fiction I've ever read; the author knows what he's doing when it comes to imagery and artistry with the English language, despite the juxtaposition of his rural redneck setting and milieu. In this story, two brothers and one friend discover four million dollars in a crashed airplane -- and their combined lives "hit the fan" with the impact of the discovery on their lives and its resulting temptations.

Most fascinating in this story is the apparently soulless main character. Without giving anything away, he illustrates flawlessly the human mind's ability to disassociate itself from its behavior... after the thrall of the protagonist, I find myself most fascinated by his wife, Sarah, the supposedly honorable recent mother (and dubious personification of all things good and nurturing?) who becomes a voice of justification and dismissal.

The rest of the characters are predictable but for the protagonist's take on them; in a way, the supporting characters provide the main character with a mirror reflecting his own skewed perspective and point of view. The reflection is frightening and at the same time enthralling... kind of the way an accident is on the street. You can't help but look, though you know you will look away.

This isn't a book for the faint-hearted, but it's a great book for fans of the macabre... and yes, I liked it until the end. The ending didn't hold up the momentum and fascination of the rest of the story. If I had my druthers, I'd tell the author how it SHOULD have ended... but c'est la vie.

Rating:
Summary: book or movie, the format doesn't get in the way
Review: Like others, I'm tempted to gravitate from a book review to a movie review, because after reading one and seeing the other, it's difficult not to make comparisons. While movies usually never measure up to a great book (Seabiscuit comes to mind) this one is an exception. Because the story is so compelling, I think the format may be irrelevant. The best movies, the best books (fiction i mean) have unforeseen twists and developments that make us flinch and then say, 'i should have seen that coming!' This is a moral thriller that reveals the darkest side of the human heart--read it or watch it.

Rating:
Summary: The Dark Side of Human Nature
Review: A SIMPLE PLAN is a first-rate novel by first-time novelist, Scott Smith. The premise of the story is simple enough: three main characters (Hank, Jacob, and Lou) stumble across a small plane wreck in the isolated woods of Ohio. The three young men discover a dead pilot inside the plane along with $4 million in cash. Hank, the main character, almost instantly comes up with a simple plan how the three can split the money and get away with it. This seemingly simple plot devise becomes an intricate motif of terror and suspense as the author skillfully explores the rapid descent of the main characters into the dark sides of their natures. The book is a fast-paced study of morality, a psychological thriller filled with page-turning suspense. With credible characterization and plot twists, this novel is a sure bet to keep the reader keenly involved right up to the denouement, which the author delivers with penetrating insight. Read the book before seeing the movie (film rights were reportedly optioned to director Mike Nichols.) Previous to publication of A SIMPLE PLAN, The New Yorker published Scott Smith's short story, "The Empty House." Keep an eye on this new author, he will surely become another Stephen King

Rating:
Summary: A Strong Moral Tale
Review: This book is very similar to the movie, which is probably because Scott B. Smith was granted the opportunity to write the screenplay to the film as well. "A Simple Plan" tells the story of two brothers, Hank and Jacob, who find a crashed plane in a forest near their home towns with a friend of Jacob's, Lou. In the plane is a bag of money -- over $4 million. Conflicted over ideas of who owns the money, where it came from, and how it would change their lives for the better if they kept it, they eventually agree to sit on the money for six months, until the spring thaw and the plane is found; if there is no mention of missing money, they agree to split it three ways.

Of course, things don't go as planned, and the novel takes twist after twist which propels Hank, the narrator of the story, into deeper and deeper moral quagmires. With each choice he makes to protect their theft and his sure wealth, he adds new things he would take the fall for should they be discovered, and new things he must live with on his conscience.

While the plot is very similar eventwise to the movie, there are a few deviations -- and, strangely enough, they almost always seem to work in the movie's favour. I watched -- and absolutely loved -- the movie a few years ago, so I knew the basic plot and was pleased to see the similarities. I count the movie among the best pure "moral" movies ever made, where the underlying principle is just a dilemma about doing the right things. But there are things which were in the novel which make Hank's choice less sympathetic than in the movie. In the movie I felt that his choices were truly, as Sarah rationalizes, without choice at all, just outcomes of their initial choice to sit on the money, things that had to follow. He never does anything which is premeditated and malicious. But here we see Hank morally deteriorated to the point where he's picking on (to put it lightly) absolutely innocent people to cover his mistakes, and not taking moral stands he knows he should make for the sake of others (one particular choice I'm thankful that he *does* make in the movie). I also didn't like the resolution to Jacob's involvement, which is the most noticeable change between the novel and the movie.

Otherwise, though, I think both the movie and the novel are worth paying attention to. Some of Hank's choices toward the end of the novel might be slightly stretching credibility, but there is an underlying principle which is strongly demonstrated throughout: good people can do evil things. The question of how close we are to being Hank Mitchells ourselves is always there, because he is, for the most part, just a normal guy. The question is not "What would you do if you found $4 million?" but rather "What would you do to keep $4 million?" If we're to accept that Hank Mitchell is just another normal guy, I'd say the answer is pretty scary.

Matthew D. Johnston

Rating:
Summary: Excellent, but for once the movie is better
Review: I read this novel after having already viewed the movie by the same name. The book and film start off nearly identically: Two brothers (Hank and Jacob) and Jacob's friend Lou find a bag containing more than $4 million in a crashed plane in the woods. They agree to hold onto the money for several months, while waiting to see if it is marked or if they will be caught if they attempt to spend it. If nothing happens in six months, the three men will split the money, leave town, and live happily ever after while enjoying the finest things in life. Only, as you already surely know, the plan turns out to be not so simple. Instead, it goes horribly awry.

The movie and book are the same in the way that the plan initially begins to fail. Hank and Jacob encounter the same problems with Dwight Pederson, Lou and his girlfriend Nancy. From there, the movie and book take their respective audiences down different paths that I will not reveal.

I liked the movie's path better, because I could better understand and appreciate Hank's actions in the movie. He comes off as less heartless, and it is easier to see his transformation from a good person to a man who has done completely evil things. Hank is far more ruthless and calculating in the book, and this is harder to accept in light of his beginnings as a normal, good man. It's hard to discuss the differences between the two media without giving too much away.

However, I cannot say that I was at all disappointed in the book. It kept me completely riveted. For the most part, the characters were completely realistic and simply entangled in an awful mess that they feel powerless to free themselves from. After finishing the book, the enormity of the character's losses took my breath away. I was left wondering whether, even if everything had gone according to the original plan, any of the characters would have been any happier than they had been prior to finding the money.

Rating:
Summary: What would you do for $4 million?
Review: A Simple Plan is an excellent tale of blackest heart suspense. Shocking, to say the least. One of the best novels of ordinary people pitted against extraordinary circumstances that I have ever read. Deceit. Treachery. Greed. Murder. An unexpectedly high body count.

A Simple Plan goes high on the recommendation list, if not for its brazen, machete like impact then for its amazing originality. Read this unforgettable book and then watch the equally disturbing film. Nothing's ever simple when there's money involved.

"Being a murderer doesn't necessarily mean anything."

Rating:
Summary: A Simple Plan: A Complicted Demise
Review: I feel that A Simple Plan by Scott Smith is an excellent suspense novel. This novel tells the story of Hank Mitchell, who finds 4.4 million dollars in an airplane that crashed in the woods. He is accompanied by his bumbling brother Jacob, and Jacob's low-life friend Lou. They agree to keep the money, and their situation seems to be very simple, when everything begins to go wrong. It all starts with the murder of an old man who saw them sneaking around the woods where the airplane crashed. From there, all of their simple lives take a dark twist. Betrayal and murder become the norm as Hank does deeds he never imagined himself doing, all being supported by his pregnant wife Sarah.

Scott Smith's uses plot twists brilliantly to keep the story going at full speed. The reader never knows what to expect next. He uses foreshadowing, dialogue, and insight into the mind of the narrator, Hank, to create an eerie feeling of suspense. One never knows until the end of the novel whether there will be a happy or tragic ending, which keeps the reader guessing until the incredible climax.

A Simple Plan was an entertaining book, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves suspenseful fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and hope to see the movie that was made about it.

Rating:
Summary: A lot of suspense, a truly facsinating book.
Review: This book was jammed packed with suspense from the start. Hank Mitchell and his pregnant wife Sarah start out with normal lives and are very happy people in the beginning. Then when Hank, his big brother Jacob, and Jacob's friend Lou find a downed plane, a dead pilot, and 4.4 million dollars everyone's life turns around and then the killing begins for the money. Hank is starting to get greedy and kills his brother and everyone connected to the money.And then Victor Klasimov comes into looking for the 4.4 million dollars which happens to be his disguised as a FBI agent and Hank is forced to kill two(Victor and town sherriff) more people or confess to the town sheriff that he stole 4.4 million dollars which is under his bed.

Rating:
Summary: A Simple Plan Goes Foul
Review: Hank and Sara go awry with their simple plan to keep the money. It would have been so easy if the players had kept to the plan. But Hank's buddies betray him. Greed outruns reason and leads to violence. Intricate and fast plot that keeps the reader guessing what would work. I asked myself a dozen times what I would have done. The movie is true to the novel. Read the novel and rent the video. See also, "The Moneybag" for legal aspects of a similar situation.