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A Simple Plan poster

Movies that feel likeA Simple Plan (1998)

Captivated by the lure of sudden wealth, the quiet rural lives of two brothers erupt into conflicts of greed, paranoia and distrust when over $4 million in cash is discovered at the remote site of a downed small airplane. Their simple plan to retain the money while avoiding detection opens a Pandora's box when the fear of getting caught triggers panicked behavior and leads to virulent consequences.

If you loved A Simple Plan, the closest films we have are One False Move (1992), SPL: Kill Zone (2005) and The Long Good Friday (1980). All three share A Simple Plan's gritty and contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Night Moves (1975).

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If A Simple Plan hit the spot, these will too

One False Move poster
One False Move
1992 · dir. Carl Franklin
🍅 93%★ 7.1crime · drama · thriller

Both are built on the same subject: neo-noir

The difference: Trades the warmth of A Simple Plan for an angle of its own

Following a series of drug deals and murders, three criminals -- Fantasia, Ray Malcolm and Pluto -- travel from Los Angeles to Houston, finally arriving in a small Arkansas town to go into hiding. Two detectives from the LAPD, who are already on the case, contact the town's sheriff, Dale Dixon, to alert him of the fugitives' presence in the area. Underestimating Dixon, the criminals have no idea what they are about to face.

SPL: Kill Zone poster
SPL: Kill Zone
2005 · dir. Wilson Yip
🍅 80%★ 6.9action · crime · dramaPrime Video

One thread runs through both: neo-noir

The difference: Easier on the warmth than A Simple Plan

Chan, an articulate senior detective nearing the end of his career, is taking care of the daughter of a witness killed by ruthless crime lord Po. Martial arts expert Ma is set to take over as head of the crime unit, replacing Chan who wants an early retirement.

The Long Good Friday poster
The Long Good Friday
1980 · dir. John Mackenzie
🍅 97%★ 7.5crime · thriller · dramaMax

Both land grit and stillness at once

In the late 1970s, Cockney crime boss Harold Shand, a gangster trying to become a legitimate property mogul, has big plans to get the American Mafia to bankroll his transformation of a derelict area of London into the possible venue for a future Olympic Games. However, a series of bombings targets his empire on the very weekend the Americans are in town. Shand is convinced there is a traitor in his organization, and sets out to eliminate the rat in typically ruthless fashion.

Sexy Beast poster
Sexy Beast
2001 · dir. Jonathan Glazer
🍅 87%★ 7.3crime · thriller · drama

The same mix in both: tension, then atmosphere

Ex-safecracker Gal Dove has served his time behind bars and is blissfully retired to a Spanish villa paradise with a wife he adores. The idyll is shattered by the arrival of his nemesis Don Logan, intent on persuading Gal to return to London for one last big job.

Night Moves poster
Night Moves
1975 · dir. Arthur Penn
🍅 78%★ 7.1thriller · crime · drama

Crime with a pulse of grit, in both cases

The difference: Made in the 1970s, in a different era of the craft

Private detective and former football player Harry Moseby gets hired on to what seems a standard missing person case - a former Hollywood actress wants Moseby to find and return her daughter. Harry travels to Florida to find her, but he begins to see a connection between the runaway girl, the world of Hollywood stuntmen, and a suspicious mechanic when an unsolved murder comes to light.

Shallow Grave poster
Shallow Grave
1994 · dir. Danny Boyle
🍅 72%★ 7.2crime · thriller

Both lean on warmth more than on thriller

When David, Juliet, and Alex find their new roommate dead with a large sum of money, they agree to hide the body and keep the cash. However, this newfound fortune gradually corrodes their friendship.

Body Heat poster
Body Heat
1981 · dir. Lawrence Kasdan
🍅 96%★ 7.4thriller · crime

Tense drama, and it commits to that

During an extreme heatwave, a beautiful Florida woman and a seedy lawyer engage in an affair while plotting the murder of her rich husband.

New World poster
New World
2013 · dir. Park Hoon-jung
🍅 63%★ 7.5thriller · crime · drama

Contemplative crime in both cases

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

An undercover cop has his loyalties tested when the boss of the corporate gang he's spent years infiltrating dies.

Shoot the Piano Player poster
Shoot the Piano Player
1960 · dir. François Truffaut
🍅 90%★ 7.4drama · thriller · crimeMax

Drama built on atmosphere, twice over

Charlie is a former classical pianist who has changed his name and now plays jazz in a grimy Paris bar. When Charlie's brothers, Richard and Chico, surface and ask for Charlie's help while on the run from gangsters they have scammed, he aids their escape. Soon Charlie and Lena, a waitress at the same bar, face trouble when the gangsters arrive, looking for his brothers.

Bound poster
Bound
1996 · dir. Lana Wachowski
🍅 86%★ 7.3drama · thriller · crime

Thriller with a pulse of grit, in both cases

Corky, a tough female ex-convict working on an apartment renovation in a Chicago building, meets a couple living next door, Caesar, a paranoid mobster, and Violet, his seductive girlfriend, who is immediately attracted to her.

Le Samouraï poster
Le Samouraï
1967 · dir. Jean-Pierre Melville
🍅 92%★ 8crime · thriller · dramaPrime VideoMax

Contemplative crime, and it commits to that

After carrying out a flawlessly planned hit, Jef Costello, a contract killer with samurai instincts, finds himself caught between a persistent police investigator and a ruthless employer, and not even his armor of fedora and trench coat can protect him.

Animal Kingdom poster
Animal Kingdom
2010 · dir. David Michôd
🍅 94%★ 7.2crime · drama

Atmospheric drama in both cases

Joshua “J” is taken in by his extended family after his mother dies of an overdose. The clan, ruled by J’s scheming grandmother, is heavily involved in criminal activities, and J is soon indoctrinated into their way of life. But J is given a chance to take another path when a cop seeks to help him.

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The best-reviewed films that share A Simple Plan’s defining feeling.