The Accountant [Blu-ray] [2016]

In director Gavin O'Connor's (Warrior) latest film, The Accountant, the films titular character and our protagonist is one that operates on the high end of the autism spectrum. The character is a math savant who has utilized his high-functioning skills to cook the books for several high-profile criminal clients that would seemingly stack the character's pockets, but may also serve as a threat to Christian Wolff and his legitimate, small-town CPA office. It's a heck of a way to set-up intrigue around a character while simultaneously bringing attention to those who function a little different from what society considers to be the norm especially when the film makes such a character as much a superhero as they do here. As Wolff, Ben Affleck is not only a genius when it comes to numbers though, but he's been nurtured into something of a killing machine by his militaristic father (Robert C. Treveiler). The film then combines these elements of Wolff's personality while mixing in a U.S. Treasury investigation led by the soon to retire Ray King (J.K. Simmons) and his forced apprentice of sorts in Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) that leads Wolff to take on something of a legitimate client in a major robotics company run by John Lithgow. This plotline also introduces us to the obligatory love interest in Anna Kendrick's Dana, but mostly The Accountant is about Affleck kicking butt and counting numbers with the amount of plot Bill Dubuque's (The Judge) screenplay attempts to pile on only serving to take away from the more interesting character study that's trying to peek out from behind all the storylines. And while the film does indeed suffer from something of an identity crisis while at the same time playing into the fact it knows fully what it is by embracing the inherent goofiness of an assassin accountant it never stops being entertaining. Even as the plot jumps from Wolff's main mission to that of the Treasury investigation, and onto the third party tracker embodied by the always charismatic Jon Bernthal and back to Wolff there is always something to keep us invested even if what is doing so feels scattershot. This would typically be a detriment to a film given it signals a lack of trust in the lead characters ability to sustain audience engagement, but under O'Connor's steady hand The Accountant makes one feel just satisfied enough by the time they're done consuming it without actually offering anything of nutritional value.

I thought it was an interesting setup, but the pacing was very slow and for many, a boring movie. I thought it was a good setup and good solid action. Definitely worth $12. About an excellent accountant who is under everyone's radar. He can leave at a moments notice and disappear. He does an audit with a company and finds many irregularities with Anna Kendrick. He and Anna run away from the bad guys and tries to find out who is trying to hide money and also who is trying to kill them. A real interesting twist at the end and also the battle scenes were quite interesting. For those who are looking for constant action like John Wick, this is not your movie. If you want a thinking mans movie, you will probably like it. Anna Kendrick is adorable as always. She always does a good job.

I am always a sucker for action movies, so picked this up to watch over the weekend. My expectations weren't high so I was not expecting a Oscar movie. Ben Afleck seems wooden in delivery of lines of dialogue and Anna Kendrick is woefully miss used. However, I didn't get the movie for dialogue! The action sequences are great. The bad guys continually get out gunned out smarted, and out beaten by the hero. The big twist at the end wasn't a big twist and telegraphed to the viewer way before the climax of the movie. The best review I saw of this movie opined that Afleck was jealous of Matt Damon's success with Good Will Hunting & the Bourne Movies so tried to tie the two together in just one of his movies. While I would not recommend this movie to a friend to buy, I definitely lend it to him to watch.

If you liked John Wick type action, like I did,,...then you might like this approach to the genre. Ben Affleck plays an autistic guy(Asperger's), that is raised by his father to kick butt, John Wick style type, in that he can kill you with his hands or with any weapon, and has a morally flexible personality. The difference between John Wick and the Accountant, is that the Accountant was missing more of an emotional connection,...which actually is one of the lead character's Asperberg symptoms; inability to emotionally/socially connect with others. Maybe another actor could have found a way to make the audience connect to the character, and care more for the protagonist. Despite said flaw, I would recommend this movie as just something to amuse yourself with some action, until a better one comes along.

It is very unusual to find poignancy in an action movie, but The Accountant manages to do this in a very exciting manner. The action in this movie is fantastic, and if that were the only reason to watch no one would be disappointed. However, there are many underlying relationships that are explored in the movie, as much as can be done in a two-hour timeframe, between the different characters. There is father-son, brother-brother, a disenfranchised mother, and a love interest that can never be amongst others. So, if you are watching to see the formation of subtle relationships you wouldn't be disappointed either. The combination existing in this movie is fantastic. I watch a lot of movies, and this is in the top 10 of the last five years.

I had very little information on this movie going into it. That being said, I was absolutely blown away by this movie. I am NOT an Affleck fan by any stretch, but this is my favorite film of his. The inclusion of a good, and respectful explanation of mental health and the symptoms, habits, and behaviors of someone with Autism was very interesting. I really enjoyed this movie and connected with Affleck's character a lot. As someone with OCD, I can say there were many parallels to his spectrum disorder and OCD. That aside, the action and fight choreography was awesome. VERY realistic how he moved tactically in the film.

This film is more of an action flick than the title suggests. Christian Wolff (Ben) is a math savant who works as a freelance accountant for some of the world's most dangerous criminal organizations. He takes on a legitimate client where an accounting clerk has discovered a discrepancy involving millions of dollars. But as Christian uncooks the books and gets closer to the truth, it is the body count that starts to rise. Ben Affleck is perfect for this part. There are many twists and turns and a bit of a surprise ending. Watch it! You won't be disappointed.

Overlooked and under-marketed when the film debuted in 2016, the Accountant never got the attention it deserved. Starring a stellar cast led by Ben Affleck, with supporting roles by Anna Kendrick and J.J. Simmons, the Accountant is a well-paced crime/action drama. Affleck may not usually be included among grade A actors, but he demonstrates here an exceptional range playing an autistic CPA who has a heart of gold -- and the training to be a stealthy killer on the side of justice. In my opinion, forget Affleck as Batman -- I want to see him come back as the Accountant. Highly recommmended!