Shadows on the Wall | The Accountant 2

The Accountant²

dir Gavin O'Connor
scr Bill Dubuque
prd Ben Affleck, Lynette Howell Taylor, Mark Williams
with Ben Affleck, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Daniella Pineda, JK Simmons, Robert Morgan, Grant Harvey, Andrew Howard, Allison Robertson, Alison Wright, Lombardo Boyar, Yael Ocasio
release US/UK 25.Apr.25
25/US Warners 2h12

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Following on from the 2016 thriller, this sequel maintains slick visuals and multiple plot holes while also leaning heavily into a sense of humour. The banter between the three leads provides a connection with the audience that pulls us in, helping us sympathise with characters even as the story wobbles. Moving briskly along, director Gavin O'Connor keeps the audience entertained as long as we don't think too deeply.

Hiding out in Idaho in his Airstream trailer, autistic mob accountant Christian (Affleck) is alerted when Federal investigator Marybeth (Addai-Robinson) finds a clue pointing to him. So he heads to Los Angeles to help with her investigation into a confusingly unresolved case involving retired agent Ray (Simmons), a murderous blonde (Pineda), a human trafficker (Morgan) and lots of goons. Christian in turn calls his trigger-happy brother Braxton (Bernthal) in Berlin, who arrives to help. But their raucously extra-legal methods rattle Marybeth, who opts to let them take action on their own because they're getting somewhere.

A key element is Christian's rural academy for autistic children, which jumps in with their hacking expertise, remaining in the shadows while leader Justine (Robertson) communicates using an artificial voice. These brainiacs provide god-like assistance at every point, solving conundrums, locating missing people, disabling security systems and so forth. Their illegal activities add to Marybeth's worries. But again, she brushes her concerns aside because they're so effective.

That said, commenting on morality or politics is beyond this script, as is taking a nuanced approach to autism. Any complexity is added by the actors, who have fun with these messy characters. Affleck and Bernthal have terrific chemistry, diving into the barbed rivalry between Christian and Braxton with a sharp sense of comical timing. And without overplaying it, there's some terrific affection in there too. Addai-Robinson brings her steelier energy into the mix, keeping up with the brothers while wishing she didn't. All three are likeable simply because of the enjoyable ways they interact.

As with the first film, there are several astonishing gaps in logic that O'Connor simply rushes past, hoping we won't notice. And other things are obscured by a dense plot that overcomplicates everything, leading to enormous action battles that could be edited out entirely without making a dent in the narrative. That said, the film is restlessly entertaining, propelling us through a series of thorny situations that are fuelled by a vague sense of righteous rough justice. Just try not to think about it afterwards.

themes, language, violence 23.Apr.25

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