Ben Affleck returns to the screen in The Accountant, the latest of director Gavin O'Connor's compelling examinations of brotherhood.
Affleck plays Christain Wolff, a CPA who moonlights by cooking and uncooking the books for some of the world's most high-profile criminals. Christian is called in to an Illinois firm specializing in applied robotics after a whistleblower (Anna Kendrick) finds millions of dollars missing from some annual statements. As fate would have it, the robotics people are up to something shady, and they'll do just about anything to keep it secret. Christian eludes and fights back against both the federal agents and hired guns who are hot on his tail.
Oh, yeah, and one more thing: Christian has a high-functioning form of autism.
My gut reaction to The Accountant is "two thumbs up." The film is as exciting a caper as we've seen this year with some terrific action sequences and a script peppered with a refreshing dose of humor. Granted there are occasional lapses in storytelling logic; some of the subplots get a bit tangled, but overall I had a great time with this movie. Affleck's "accountant" feels like the return of the "everyman" hero. If you ask me, the current blockbuster landscape has needed a corny "everyman" flick badly.
Perhaps more engaging than the set pieces, however, the story explores some of the coping mechanisms and developmental strategies of people with developmental disorders such as autism and Asperger's syndrome. It's great to have an entertaining flick with mainstream appeal that calls attention to some of these issues. I've heard some criticisms from people who are concerned that the film may be too ableist. In truth, the film examines how Christian's character grows in response to, or in spite of, ableism. Christian's father is a hardened military man who forces his boys into specialized combat training out of fear that young Christian may be picked on for being "different." Perhaps that's an inherently "ableist" attitude, but it's part of the father's character. Also, I say "boys" because Christian has a younger brother, Braxton, and whatever the two of them do, they do together. One is never portrayed as superior to the other. The father wants his sons both to learn how to cope with the harsh stimuli of the world around them. Christian is never coddled or made to be "less than" anyone else, and we see how this pans out from early development through his mature coping years.
No doubt there are capable actors out there who have made successful careers for themselves despite living with a developmental disorder. One day hopefully we'll have someone like that in a role like this. However, even with Affleck in the part, I say that some representation is better than none at all.
And, besides, when have we ever been able to say that the coolest Hollywood "superhero" of the year is an autistic accountant?
B+
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