The Family Plan
Dan Morgan is many things: a devoted husband, a loving father, a celebrated car salesman. He's also a former assassin. And when his past catches up to his present, he's forced to take his unsuspecting family on a road trip unlike any other.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
The Family Plan (2023) demonstrates strategically placed dramatic framework, characteristic of Simon Cellan Jones's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 58 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.6, the film showcases strong structural fundamentals.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Dan Morgan lives as a mild-mannered suburban car salesman in Buffalo, coaching his daughter's soccer team and navigating typical family chaos with his wife Jessica and three kids.. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 14 minutes when Dan learns that his former handler McCaffrey has been killed and that his old adversary has found him, putting his family in immediate danger and destroying the peaceful life he's built.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 29 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to Dan makes the active choice to take his family on a spontaneous road trip, claiming it's for a family reunion, knowing this irreversible decision launches them into danger but is the only way to keep them safe., moving from reaction to action.
At 59 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Significantly, this crucial beat Jessica discovers the truth about Dan's past as an assassin. The false victory of keeping his secret collapses into a false defeat as his wife and children learn he's been lying to them for years, raising the stakes dramatically., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 88 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, The family is captured by the antagonist. Dan is separated from them, believing he has failed completely to protect them. His worst fear—that his past would destroy his family—has come true. His old life has killed his new one., illustrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 94 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Dan realizes that both identities are real—he IS both the assassin and the father—and his family signals they're with him. This synthesis of his two worlds gives him clarity: he doesn't have to choose between protecting his family and being honest with them., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
The Family Plan's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs a 15-point narrative structure framework that maps key story moments. By mapping The Family Plan against these established plot points, we can identify how Simon Cellan Jones utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish The Family Plan within the action genre.
Comparative Analysis
Additional action films include The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, The Bad Guys and Lake Placid.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Dan Morgan lives as a mild-mannered suburban car salesman in Buffalo, coaching his daughter's soccer team and navigating typical family chaos with his wife Jessica and three kids.
Theme
Jessica tells Dan that "family is everything" and mentions how important honesty is in their relationship, foreshadowing the central conflict about Dan's hidden past.
Worldbuilding
Establishing Dan's carefully constructed suburban life: his car dealership job, his relationship with wife Jessica and children Nina, Kyle, and baby Max, and the mundane rhythms of family life that conceal his secret past as an elite assassin.
Disruption
Dan learns that his former handler McCaffrey has been killed and that his old adversary has found him, putting his family in immediate danger and destroying the peaceful life he's built.
Resistance
Dan debates how to protect his family without revealing his past. He must decide whether to run with them or try to handle the threat alone, while his family remains oblivious to the danger.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Dan makes the active choice to take his family on a spontaneous road trip, claiming it's for a family reunion, knowing this irreversible decision launches them into danger but is the only way to keep them safe.
Mirror World
On the road, Jessica and the kids begin to see glimpses of a different Dan—his unusual skills and knowledge—creating the relationship dynamic that will force him to confront who he really is versus who he pretends to be.
Premise
The "fun and games" of a former assassin trying to protect his family while maintaining his cover. Dan uses his skills to evade pursuers while making excuses, the family experiences increasingly bizarre situations, and the road trip premise delivers action and comedy.
Midpoint
Jessica discovers the truth about Dan's past as an assassin. The false victory of keeping his secret collapses into a false defeat as his wife and children learn he's been lying to them for years, raising the stakes dramatically.
Opposition
Dan's family is furious and distrustful while the enemies close in. His attempts to protect them are undermined by their lack of trust. The antagonist tightens the net, and Dan must fight threats from outside while his family falls apart from within.
Collapse
The family is captured by the antagonist. Dan is separated from them, believing he has failed completely to protect them. His worst fear—that his past would destroy his family—has come true. His old life has killed his new one.
Crisis
Dan faces his dark night, believing he's lost everything. Meanwhile, his family—now understanding why he hid his past—must decide whether to forgive him and whether the man they know is real despite his lies.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Dan realizes that both identities are real—he IS both the assassin and the father—and his family signals they're with him. This synthesis of his two worlds gives him clarity: he doesn't have to choose between protecting his family and being honest with them.
Synthesis
The finale where Dan and his family work together, using both his skills and their knowledge of him, to defeat the antagonist. The family embraces all of who Dan is, and together they execute the plan to survive and eliminate the threat permanently.
Transformation
Dan is back coaching soccer, but now his family knows the truth and accepts all of him. The suburban normalcy remains, but it's built on honesty instead of lies. They are truly a family now, secrets and all.