Count on ‘The Accountant,’ at least in part, for some surprises
Can a math genius also be an action hero?
Ben Affleck certainly gives it a try in “The Accountant,” one of those thrillers that wants to have fun by putting unlikely targets in the midst of mayhem. The 2016 movie – which TNT shows Saturday, Dec. 10 – is loaded with flashbacks explaining how the main character came to be who he is, but what counts most is who he is now: the person who keeps his eye on the money for some big-league criminals.
All is well as long as everything adds up for them, but things get much more complicated for him thanks to a Treasury agent played by J.K. Simmons, as well as a whistleblower on company corruption. That’s Anna Kendrick, who helped fire Simmons in “Up in the Air” earlier, and her mere presence adds instant energy to this tale.
Director Gavin O’Connor (who reunited with Affleck later on “The Way Back”) approaches “The Accountant” with true purpose, having to wade through a lot of exposition to get to where the plot ultimately is headed, but it gets thick with detail it doesn’t really earn the patience for.
However, it does get points for the pleasures of showing a numbers wonk break out with martial-arts skills and an astonishingly good aim with weaponry. And also for employing a good cast that also includes the ever-watchable John Lithgow as the chief of the company Kendrick is giving up the goods on.
Additionally, there’s an intriguing subplot about the autism in the central character’s background. One result is that he has trouble making personal connections, even with someone as naturally appealing as Kendrick’s alter ego. The typically charismatic Affleck plays that aspect quite well, and the work he did for it clearly shows.
Debuting in the fall of its year, “The Accountant” fell in line with other Warner Bros. releases of previous fall seasons that were action showcases for its stars: Sylvester Stallone in “The Specialist,” Denzel Washington in “Ricochet,” etc. The studio pretty much laid claim to that slot for that purpose for a long time, and there’s a certain fun reliability about that. That said, of course, it still comes down to the effectiveness of the individual film.
It really falls to Affleck to sell “The Accountant,” and he fares well overall with the specifics it requires of him ... but as real accountants sometimes find in their work, the picture’s parts ultimately have more value than the sum.