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Published October 19th, 2016

Film Clips

The 'Accountant' Doesn't Use A Beautiful Mind

By Derek Zemrak

Image provided

The opening scene of the movie "The Accountant" has a young autistic boy struggling to find the last piece of a puzzle, which is creating frustration and confusion in the child. Was this a foreshadowing the director, Gavin O'Conner ("Tumbleweeds") was trying to create? I think not but the film is missing a few pieces.

The movie continues with a family torn apart by autism and the departure of the young boy's mom from the family. The dad, who is serving in the army, must take control the best way he can.

Fast forward in time - the young boy, Christian Wolf (Ben Afleck) is now grown up and is a high-functioning autistic accountant who is laundering money for crime cartels. The Treasury Department Director Raymond King (J.K. Simmons) makes learning the accountant's identity his highest priority before his planned retirement. The discovery of a series of photographs leads Director King and his assistant, Marybeth (Cynthia Addai-Robison) in the right direction.

When Wolf is hired to administer a forensic accounting audit on a robotics company, everything begins to unravel. When he discovers the fraud he is quickly terminated by the partner of the company, Lamar Black (John Lithgow), who then hires a hit man to kill Wolf and the researcher (Anna Kendrick), his assistant in the audit. The movie quickly changes from "A Beautiful Mind" to a Jason Bourne film. This piece of the puzzle just did not fit.

I feel the filmmaker had the opportunity to educate society on the negative assumptions of autism and the spectrum of functionality. There is a line in the film that has stayed with me - "People have different gifts. What is normal?" This is the missing piece of the puzzle. I wanted more, not just an action thriller.

Overall, the film tries to be too much in the two hours and eight minutes. "The Accountant" is rated R for strong violence and language. If you are expecting "A Beautiful Mind," you will be disappointed. If the Jason Bourne style is more to your liking, you will enjoy this thriller.

Upcoming Special Events at the Rheem Theatre:

Saturday, Oct. 22 - Lord Blood-Rah's Halloween Festival and Bazaar: A day long festival of Halloween theme movies and buckets of fun!

7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29 - "Phantom of the Opera" (1925) with live musical score, lecture, games and prizes.



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