THE ACCOUNTANT  3.2***

  Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is a savant genius at math and very skilled at forensic accounting, or "uncooking the books", which he does for unsavory characters and criminal organizations all over the world. Wolff has Asperger Syndrome which is considered a milder form of autism and sufferers are often characterized by "relatively normal language and intelligence" although they still display impaired social interaction and restricted and repetitive behavior. It’s unusual to find a movie character with Asperger's in a movie but it certainly works well in "The Accountant" – and does so on multiple levels. Through the very tough (and some would say abusive) upbringing of his father, Wolff learned to function independently in the adult world – and to protect himself from those who would do him harm – either because he's "different" – or because of his dangerous clientele. Christian has also learned to fly under the radar as a legitimate CPA with an ordinary office with regular ordinary people although he makes his real money (and it’s a LOT) working for criminals on the side.

Even with all those dangerous clients, Christian encounters some of his biggest challenges in his current assignment near Chicago. He is hired by a up and coming tech firm called Living Robotics, whose CEO (John Lithgow) asks him to look into an issue of missing capital, discovered by a young accountant named Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick). Christian quickly figures out what happened to the money and who did it, but getting so close to the underlying truth of the diversion of funds puts him and Dana in mortal danger. A hired an assassin  and his team move in to try to silence the pair.  

This is a very enjoyable action-crime-drama… if you don't look too close. The background and story of the main character is unusual and rather original – as are many of the movie's plot points – and the story features some interesting twists. More studious Movie Fans may notice that parts of the story don't quite add up, but the story is still  good enough and the characters are so interesting that you may decide that the unanswered questions really don't matter that much.  This movie in the 2^nd half exhibits some sensory overload, but even so it will stimulate not only intellectuals but white-knuckled action junkies as well.  

This is  a creative, exciting and satisfying movie  and the way it humanizes the still little-understood condition of Asperger’s/autism adds unexpected heart to the story. The acting  is excellent. I think Ben Affleck as Christian Wolff is one of the best characters he's ever played. Affleck's performance is both engaging and mesmerizing. Everyone does their job here, but Affleck steals the show.

Rated R for strong violence and language throughout.

Clark