"The Accountant" Movie Review

The Accountant is a film worth seeing. Ben Affleck leads an all-star cast, including Anna Kendrick, Jon Bernthal, J.K. Simmons, Jeffrey Tambor, and John Lithgow. The story follows accountant Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) who is hired to find the leak within a Robotics company. But when he and fellow accountant Dana (Anna Kendrick) gets too close to exposing what's really happening behind closed doors, assassins are hired to kill them. Little do they know, Christian has secrets of his own. He himself is an assassin, one of the best even. Now Christian must protect Dana and take down the corrupt CEO who is stealing from his own company.

Ben Affleck breaks new ground in his film career. His character, Christian, is autistic. Affleck's performance was commendable and one of the best he's done. Anna Kendrick was her usual bubbly bumbly self. There's never much change with her from one role to the next. At least she's not as full of herself as she used to be when she first started getting fame. Jon Bernthal was splendid in his role as the head assassin hired to take down Christian. Jon seems to do better in the bad guy role. He always adds a sort of darkness that is incomparable with most. J.K. Simmons had the most emotional moment in the film, recounting a traumatic moment that changed his life and his idea of what's right and wrong. Jeffrey Tambor had more of a cameo than a starring role. It was different than what he usually does, which made it all the more shocking. John Lithgow was just John Lithgow and that's all right. He's one of those actors that's loved regardless of what he does.

The story was well-written, well thought out, and well-executed. The twist at the end was worth the wait and definitely one you won't see coming. The only problem I had with the film was the lack of emotional content. J.K. Simmons' one emotional scene just wasn't enough. Sure you cared about the characters but for different reasons. You cared about Christian because he was autistic. You cared about Dana because she was an innocent caught in the middle. You cared about the side characters because they were fun or just in the wrong place at the wrong time. There wasn't, however, a scene that truly broke your heart or got your hopes up, or even made you fall in love. It was straightforward with some humour and espionage sprinkled on top. Even the twist was more shock value than what could have been incredibly heart-wrenching,

In conclusion, the film is definitely worth seeing. I'd even go back to the theaters to see it a second time. Just don't expect anything outside of what you might find in a usual crime/action film. You'll still have a good time regardless. 3 out of 4.