The Accountant - movie review
The Accountant
Plot: As a math savant uncooks the books for a new client, the Treasury Department closes in on his activities and the body count starts to rise.
Cast: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons
Director: Gavin O'Connor
Rating: 15 (strong language, violence)
Runtime: 2hrs 8 mins
Release Date: Friday 4th November 2016
Ben Affleck. Oscar winning director. Best friends with Matt Damon. Daredevil. Batman. It's safe to say that they guy has done pretty well for himself. Now, he stars in the most formidable role he's ever had. Beware, because even just the name will leave you all in shock. Affleck stars as and in... The Accountant. It's tough to express in writing, but that was entirely sarcasm. For a great film, it really does have a crap title.
As shown in the introduction, Ben Affleck has come on leaps and bounds in recent years. He started his career on such a high (winning an Oscar for the screenplay for Good Will Hunting), that a decline was expected. And boy did it go downhill. Affleck starred in numerous early noughties romantic comedies that were dreadful. Gigli with Jennifer Lopez is regarded as one of the worst films ever made. However, say what you will about Daredevil, I didn't think Affleck was bad in the role. He then took a break and came back as a talented director. Since then, Affleck has only gotten better and he reached the pinnacle when he became Batman in this year's BvS. Ok, the film itself wasn't what people hoped but the general consensus was that Ben Affleck was an outstanding Batman. In The Accountant, I can say that he's only gotten better. I'd still say that Batman is Affleck's best work but as far as actual acting goes, Affleck's depiction of Christian Wolff is his best performance. Wolff is a very smart accountant who is able to complete a ridiculous amount of work in a short space of time. This also makes him a valuable resource for criminal groups to help them with laundering money, uncooking books and just being clever with money. But what makes Wolff that little bit different is that he suffers from a severe case of autism. For Affleck, there could have been numerous issues to encounter with an acting challenge like this. The worst case scenario would be that it's a horrifically inaccurate portrayal that comes across incredibly offensive. It could have also gone in the opposite direction where Affleck underplays it resulting in the audience questioning why the character was given autism in the first place. Thankfully, and props to Gavin O'Connor for the direction of this, it's a careful and accurate portrayal. I've worked with autistic children at a stables and I have to say that when we see Wolff as a child and how his family trauma affects him, it is on point. Due to the autism, Wolff struggles with social interactions meaning that when he does encounter people (either clients or Anna Kendrick's aid) it can lead to some comedic moments that are still respectfully treated. Wolff also makes for an amazing accountant. Many people with autism or Asperger's have an incredible talent with numbers and spotting patterns so this results in Wolff being the best at what he does. Let me just say, I'm awful with money so I'd love it if I could pay him to do taxes or any monetary business. I'd let him account my entire life if I could. However, the part of Wolff's character that is the main pull for the film is that he is able to kick, shoot and punch an unbelievable amount of ass. Think Jason Bourne meets John Wick. He's very clinical and skilled in killing people. Whether it be a giant sniper rifle, a sub-automatic machine gun or his own fists, Wolff is bound to be an expert. I can imagine that in between starring as Batman and directing, Affleck may have found his smaller recurring role to keep him busy. Wolff absolutely is one of the most compelling and fascinating characters from film this year.
Anna Kendrick appears in a supporting role who discovers an issue that requires Affleck's attention. She then, unintentionally, gets wrapped up in this conspiracy causing her and Wolff to go on the run together. The role isn't meaty like Affleck had and serves more as a way for Wolff to explain his thought process to her which also explains it to us but that being said, Kendrick is very likeable in the role. In fact, has there ever been a film where Anna Kendrick isn't loveable? She just seems like such a lovely person. Another supporting role belongs to J.K. Simmons, one of my favourite actors. Known for J. Jonah. Jameson in the early Spider-Man films and one of the best performances I've ever seen in Whiplash, I was a tad disappointed with Simmons in The Accountant. His performance; not a problem. If anything, it shows how good he's going to be as Commissioner Gordon. The unfortunate problem is that his entire arc and story is utterly pointless. Simmons plays a Treasury agent who begins to notice discrepancies that all link to one guy, The Accountant. So he and Amanda Waller from the Arrow show (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) begin to investigate who this mysterious figure is. The issue arises whenever the film cuts back to them. It slams on the brakes and ultimately never amounts to anything. You could remove that entire plotline and apart from one scene, it wouldn't have made a difference. That scene also was noticeably drawn out. It serves only as an exposition scene and I began to notice that it went on for way too long. Just when I thought it was drawing to a close, it kept going. It was like the Return Of The King of exposition scenes; so many places where it could have finished. The only other character worthy of mention is Brax played by Jon Bernthal. Retaining some of the brutality that he used as The Punisher, Bernthal is, like always, fantastic. He plays a private security official who is more than a match for Affleck's Accountant. Bernthal plays the character well with witty dialogue and never puts a foot wrong. If anything, it makes me want to know more about his character and see him appear again.
FACT: Anna Kendrick took inspiration from her mother for her character who is a real accountant. She also checked over the script and explained the complicated math equations.
Smart. That's the best way to describe The Accountant. It isn't your usual action thriller. Whereas most action blockbusters like to highlight the action first and the story and characters come in second (John Wick, Taken), The Accountant chooses the less popular route of putting story and character development first and then being knowledgeable where to intersperse the fight scenes. The Accountant isn't really a film that you can sit back, shove popcorn in your face and enjoy because you'll end up confused. It requires your utmost attention throughout because it's full of twists and turns that even a trip to the toilet could jeopardise a major plot reveal. A reason for this is that many sections of The Accountant are nonlinear with scenes that appear and then aren't relevant until later. The dialogue is very snappy and keeps the film flowing especially throughout the first act when not a single punch is thrown nor a gun fired. The first act is possibly my favourite part of the film because of how well is sets up this story and characters especially Wolff. They perfectly depict his daily routines and because of Gavin O'Connor's fantastic direction, it can be harrowing to watch at times. Because he gets himself so focused throughout his day, the only way Wolff can unwind is by putting strobe lighting on, listening to loud heavy metal music and smashing his knee with a metal pole. Now I know that even for me that would be painful so I can't even begin to imagine how stressful it would be for someone with autism. Those scenes may be tough to watch but it's strangely hypnotic and a beautifully constructed scene. The action, when it does kick in, is incredible. I already knew O'Connor was capable of shooting intense action sequences with a previous film of his, Warrior (my favourite sports film), but the gun and fist fights are amazing. There's a mixture of gung-fu and just hardcore bullets to the head but there were legitimately some moments that made me wiggle in my seat saying 'OOOOOH SNAP!". A downfall to these action sequences is that, because Affleck is so good at killing these people, there are times when he comes across as a superhuman and cannot be hurt. If that was the attempt, The Accountant is a shit superhero name. But I assume that wasn't the intention and it does result in the stakes not being so high because I felt like he wouldn't die. I also wasn't a fan of one particular scene that explains how Affleck became such a badass. The scene is fine but it has no place in this film. It goes from very gritty action to a jungle take on The Karate Kid.
By removing the completely unnecessary plot of Treasury agents and a tad less signposted exposition scenes, The Accountant is fantastically excellent. Even with those imperfections, Affleck just owns every moment as Wolff and sign me up for more films about him. Gavin O'Connor continues to be a stellar director so I'm all for him continuing this story too. I'm calling it now; The Accountant 2: Account Harder.
My Verdict: 8/10
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