Best Laid Plans

Starring:Alessandro Nivola, Reese Witherspoon, Josh Brolin, Gene Wolande, Jonathan McMurtry, Father Terrance Sweeney, Rebecca Klingler, Rocky Carroll, Kate Hendrickson, Owen Bush, Jesse Woodrow, James Marsh (II), Michael McCleery, Terrence Howard, Sean Nepita, Jody Wood, Teddy Vincent, JosÃ© Mendoza, Michael G. Hagerty, Jane Morris
Director: Mike Barker
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

At first, Best Laid Plans comes off like yet another all-flash-no-substance crime thriller, but it's one of those rare films that end better than they start. Nick (Alessandro Nivola from Face/Off), broke and desperate to get out of his suffocating small town, agrees to take part in a drug heist. When his partners get caught, he has less than a week to come up with $15,000 or suffer the consequences. When his college buddy Brice (Josh Brolin--Flirting with Disaster) comes back to town, Nick and his girlfriend Lissa (Reese Witherspoon) hatch a plan to bilk Brice out of a rare collectible. Of course, things go wrong--which is where things get entertaining. The plot could use a few more twists to really crackle, but the surprises it does have work, and the ending is both clever and affecting. Along the way, the best scene features a drug dealer who quotes economic theory from the bible of capitalism, The Wealth of Nations. In the past few years, Witherspoon has turned in superb performances in such varied movies as Freeway, Pleasantville, and especially Election; Best Laid Plans doesn't make much use of her talent, but she's always watchable. --Bret Fetzer

Description

Welcome to Tropico, a gray little town smack dab in the middle of nowhere where nothing ever happens- until a botched robbery leaves Nick (Alessandro Nivola) 48 hours to pay up or die. Desperate, Nick and his girlfriend Lissa (Reese Witherspoon) undertake drastic measures to get their hands on some fast cash. Enter Nick's old college chum Bryce (Josh Brolin), a seemingly easy mark who holds the ticket to the couple's salvation. But before long, all three young people will find themselves entwined in a dangerous web of betrayal and seduction that L.A. Weekly calls "a treasure map of double crosses and hairpin turns."

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing.......2007-03-12

A Professor of literature has a woman accuse him of rape. The Professor goes berserk. I won't give more of the story away. Basically, the movie is a thriller and there are two twists in it. The first twist I saw from a mile away but I was surprised about the second one. The good thing about this movie was the romantic story, you felt the actors actually had some chemistry and genuinely cared for each other. This is in contrast to other movies where there is no character development and the romantic portion of the story feels forced.

I was expecting an exciting thriller. The movie's script is average, the acting is OK, and the ending was not that good. For me, there was no likable character in this movie.

Another Film du noir.......2006-06-10

I saw the scene,where they have Lissa chained to the pool table and gagged in the basement.I didn't understand most of the movie. I bet Kim Possible,Ron Stoppabl,and Rufus can deal with them.

Not the best laid film, but it gets extra points for originality.......2006-03-22

I must say that 'Best Laid Plans' is in a league of it's own. I have never seen a movie that took me for the turns this film did, and anyone who says that they guessed the ending is just lying to make their hatred for this movie resonate. This film may not be perfect, and there are some boring scenes as they try to hard to explain the state Nick is in, but the overall plot of this film is one I've never seen done before. From the opening scene in the bar when Reese enters till you find her chained up in the basement and she tells Nick "we're screwed" you start to realize that what you think you know, you don't...and thats the case throughout this entire movie. From the start to the finish you have no clue who's involved in what. When Nick (Nivola) makes the bad choice of stealing some dope with friends and his friends are caught he ends up at the bad end of the gun. He has just a few days to get $15,000 or he's going to be worse than dead...Then his friend Brice (Brolin) moves back and Nick and Lissa (Witherspoon) come up with a plan, only it backfires, and then they find a way out of it, but that plan backfires and before you know it their back where they started, litterally. THis movie, for all it's twists and turns and ORIGINALITY, while not being perfect still is a recomended film for anyone who wants to see something fresh and different than the normal popcorn munching drama. 4 1/2 stars.

Contrived, convoluted, but somewhat watchable.......2005-12-28

This mostly forgotten thriller starring Reese Witherspoon (Lissa) and Alessandro Nivola (Nick) suffers from a mightily contrived plot and a "Huh?--What happened?" ending. Nick is a guy who works at the local recycling plant (that's a new workplace for celluloid protagonists) who is about to inherit some big bucks from his father who has just kicked the bucket.

Meanwhile some of his coworkers are scheming up a plot to...well, no spoilers here. Let's just say that the viewer does not find out about this plot until the end, and then it seems a little...well, lame.

Along comes Lissa looking mighty fine and they fall in love, although I must say the chemistry certainly didn't spark up the screen. Now comes complication number one: the old man blew almost all his money and what he didn't blow the IRS is grabbing. Because of this Nick gets tempted into driving a get-away car for a drug rip off... Things go awry and Nick ends up in deep doo-doo, and in desperation gets Lissa to help him rip off an old school chum...which... Well, what these people do in desperation is a little on the unbelievable side.

I'm sorry that's all vague, but at least it's enough information to let you know if you actually saw this movie or not. Now, if you like probability-challenged, convoluted plots with loose ends and a lot of unlikely twists and turns, you might find this movie interesting. And if you like Reese, and you should, you might also find a reason for sticking around until the end. I know I did. She does a good job and looks good doing it.

Bottom line: although the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, it can also be said that the most meticulously contrived plots sometimes turn out about as convincing as pseudoscience. Incidentally the title is a paraphrase of the 18th century Scottish poet Robert Burns's line: "The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men/Gang aft a-gley."

shocking and a very hooking story.......2005-02-26

see this
it will shock you
move you
thrill you
excite you
chill you
freak you out
it's one amazing, strange movie
it really takes a while to understand it at times
but it has many valuable lessons one can learn
Witherspoons performance is shattering and remarkable among other things. a great movie. will be seen more times then I can count the next times I play it in my player

Average customer rating:

Best Laid Plans

Manufacturer: Tcfhe
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

Average customer rating:

Disappointing
Another Film du noir
Not the best laid film, but it gets extra points for originality
Contrived, convoluted, but somewhat watchable
shocking and a very hooking story

Best Laid Plans [Region 2]
Starring: Alessandro Nivola , Reese Witherspoon , Josh Brolin , Gene Wolande , and Jonathan McMurtry
Director: Mike Barker
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Freeway
Fear
S.F.W.
Overnight Delivery
Twilight

ASIN: B0002848ZI

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing.......2007-03-12

Another Film du noir.......2006-06-10

I saw the scene,where they have Lissa chained to the pool table and gagged in the basement.I didn't understand most of the movie. I bet Kim Possible,Ron Stoppabl,and Rufus can deal with them.

Not the best laid film, but it gets extra points for originality.......2006-03-22

Contrived, convoluted, but somewhat watchable.......2005-12-28

shocking and a very hooking story.......2005-02-26

Average customer rating:

Family Secrets: Best Laid Plans
Director: Catherine Anneau
Manufacturer: TITLE HOUSE e-DISTRIBUTION
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVD RELEASE DATE: MAY 2007

ASIN: B000RO4NAC

Product Description

A well-adjusted couple in their 20s want to have kids. When the young woman discovers she may never conceive, she tries to balance fertility treatments with familial pressure.

Average customer rating:

The Best Laid Plans
Starring: Best Laid Plans
Manufacturer: Fox Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

DVD:

DVD

Pauline at the Beach (REGION 1) (NTSC)

DVD: Vatos

Men Of Action