{"id":30087,"date":"2024-11-20T02:06:37","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T10:06:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=30087"},"modified":"2024-11-20T02:06:37","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T10:06:37","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-4k-ultra-hd-review-a-simple-plan-1998","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=30087","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! 4K Ultra HD Review: A SIMPLE PLAN (1998)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This film is currently available as a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d\n4K Ultra HD release from Arrow Video. A \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray is available\nseparately.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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While director Sam Raimi is best known to genre movie\nenthusiasts for the Evil Dead<\/em> and Tobey Maguire Spider-Man<\/em>\nseries, Darkman<\/em>, The Quick and the Dead<\/em> and Drag Me to Hell<\/em>,\nhe is also responsible for some great dramatic works. A Simple Plan<\/em> was\none of his first that was more interested in character and atmosphere than\nvisual spectacle. Not that the movie wasn\u2019t beautiful to look at, but it also\ndelved deeper into the lives of the lead characters. It\u2019s a wonderful neo-noir\nthat still stands up today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arrow Video is now releasing a 4K Ultra HD upgrade of the\nfilm. Not only is the movie fantastic, but it now looks marvelous too. This is\na clear upgrade over all previous editions, with a much sharper and cleaner\nimage. The snowy outdoor locations, including the crash site in the woods,\nreally pop off the screen. There is even more detail in the streets and\ninteriors, which do even more to engross viewers in the setting and story. The\ncamera negative was scanned in 4K resolution in Dolby Vision and the work\nresults in a top-notch disc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those who haven\u2019t seen the movie, it is set in a small\ntown in Minnesota. Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton) and his wife Sarah (Bridget\nFonda) are struggling to get by as the cold winter sets. While spending time\nwith his slow-witted brother Jacob (Billy Bob Thornton) and Jacob\u2019s pal Lou\n(Brent Briscoe), the pair come across a small airplane that has come down in\nthe woods. Inside, the trio discovers $4 million dollars. Hank initially wants\nto report the find to authorities, but after a discussion, the three decide to\nwait and see if anyone is looking for the cash. The protagonist tells wife\nSarah, who is initially skeptical of their plan, but soon, like all the others,\nfinds herself desiring a massive payday. As events unfold, bad decisions,\ndesperation and greed begin to get the best of the characters. Lou\u2019s wife Nancy\n(Becky Ann Baker) also gets involved, until the situation becomes untenable and\nviolence erupts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As mentioned, this is an excellent feature with incredible\nperformances. It\u2019s definitely a neo-noir, showing how the discovery of money\ncan ultimately turn good people bad and force them to do horrible things to\neach other. The entire ensemble is wonderful to watch and the atmosphere is\npalpable. You can really see the wheels turning in the heads of the characters\nas problems arise, as well as the guilt that ultimately overcomes a couple of\nthem. The movie earned a couple of Academy Award nominations (for Best\nSupporting Actor and Adapted Screenplay) but frankly it deserved\nmore.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Director Sam Raimi\u2019s touch also helps the movie tremendously. While many have noted a more subdued approach with less camera moves, there are still plenty of beautiful shots. This includes some a few low-angles and extreme close-ups on actor\u2019s faces, as well as effective rack-focus moments and a couple of striking jolts of violence. The camerawork doesn\u2019t overpower the story, but fans of the director will still see unique stylistic touches that sets the film apart. Obviously, the filmmaker\u2019s familiarity with the horror genre also means that he knows how to build tension and really turn the screws on the leads as events progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is a real winner with a memorable ending that stays\nwith the viewers. The new 4K Ultra HD disc is equally impressive. In addition\nto the great picture quality, there are plenty of enlightening bonuses. The\nfirst of two commentary tracks features movie historian Glenn Kenny and film\nnoir expert Farran Smith Nehme. They give plenty of interesting info on the\nbackground of the production. The movie passed through various hands, including\nMike Nichols, Ben Stiller and John Dahl before landing with John Boorman (Deliverance,\nExcalibur<\/em>). Funding always seemed to evaporate and delays ended up causing\nBoorman to leave the film. Sam Raimi, wanting to try something new and\ncharacter-based, stepped in and the rest is history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nehme goes through and notes the similarities this story has\nto older noirs. While she says it doesn\u2019t look like one of those films, the\nplot and events fit it in with the genre. The expert also compliments the\noverall effectiveness of the picture. They also talk about how phenomenal Fonda\nis in her role which ultimately transforms a pregnant mom-to-be into a Lady\nMacBeth-like character. The pair discuss the themes and point out the symbolism\nin the film, and much more. It\u2019s an excellent track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The second commentary is also a fun listen. Production\ndesigner Patrizia von Brandenstein talks with a film expert about working on\nthe picture. She states that Raimi was a great collaborator. He talked with her\nabout color schemes, the look of the snow and sets and that she enjoyed working\non this production. Brandenstein notes that everyone from the cast to the local\ncrew was wonderful on the set. All of the performers loved the script and were\nexcited to delve into the meaty characters and show what they could do as\nperformers, resulting in a great movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only production issues came with the cold weather, as\nwell as having to move the crew around from Minnesota to Wisconsin in order to\nfind snow for a few exteriors. Another fun fact gleaned was that the home base\nfor the production (as well as a few sets) was a studio and audio recording\narea owned by musician Prince. Additionally, while Raimi was coming into the\nproduction after Paxton, Thornton and a few others were attached via Boorman,\nthe new arrival was responsible for casting Bridget Fonda (whom he had recently\nworked with on Army of Darkness<\/em>). This is another fun and informative\ntrack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There is also a recent interview with cinematographer Alar\nKivilo, who notes that his interview with Raimi was quick and that he was hired\non the spot. The Canadian agrees that the conditions were cold, and admits he\nwasn\u2019t expecting that working on a Hollywood film was going to be just as\nchilling as working up north. Kivilo interestingly notes that the effective gun\nmuzzle flashes in the movie were authentically achieved by lighting up still\ncamera photography bulbs on set. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Co-star Becky Ann Baker is also interviewed and shares her\npleasant experience working with Raimi. She has entertaining stories about\nRaimi\u2019s sense of humor and shooting, talking about some great bits she\nimprovised, as well as a violent scene involving her character. Another cast\nmember, Chelcie Ross, talks about his experience playing the town sheriff and\nan embarrassing mistake he made on the first night of shooting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In addition, the disc contains EPK interviews with Paxton,\nThornton, Fonda, director Sam Raimi and producer James J. Jacks. A\nbehind-the-scenes featurette and trailer is also included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you enjoy the films of Sam Raimi (like I do) and have 4K\ncapabilities, then the \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD edition of A Simple\nPlan<\/em> is a must-own. The transfer is exceptional, the film itself is a\ncompletely engrossing neo-noir with great performances and some visual treats,\nand the discs extras are informative and fun to listen to. I can\u2019t recommend\nthis Arrow Video release enough. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This film is currently available as a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD release from Arrow Video. A \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray is available separately. While director Sam Raimi is best known to genre movie enthusiasts for the Evil Dead and Tobey Maguire Spider-Man series, Darkman, The Quick and the Dead and Drag Me to Hell, he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":30089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[134,300,543,544,545,546,547,1836,2433,2743,2753,2933,2937,3295,3471,3523,6251,14670,17563,22825],"class_list":["post-30087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-134","tag-4k-ultra-hd","tag-a-simple-plan","tag-a-simple-plan-4k-review","tag-a-simple-plan-4k-ultra-hd","tag-a-simple-plan-4k-ultra-hd-review","tag-a-simple-plan-review","tag-arrow-video","tag-becky-ann-baker","tag-bill-paxton","tag-billy-bob-thornton","tag-blasts-from-the-past-2","tag-blasts-from-the-past-a-simple-plan","tag-book-adaptation","tag-brent-briscoe","tag-bridget-fonda","tag-drama","tag-neo-noir","tag-sam-raimi","tag-thriller"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30087\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}