While sequels seldom live up to the original, Gavin O’Connor’s years-in-the-making The Accountant 2 is a welcome surprise.
It has almost been a decade since The Accountant was released in 2016, and Christian Wolff, played by Ben Affleck, is recalled into the fray after his past federal liaison Raymond King, played by J. K. Simmons, is assassinated during an investigation. King’s replacement Marybeth Medina, played by Cynthia Addai-Robinson brings him on board to help solve the puzzle, which reunites him with his estranged hitman brother Braxton, played by Jon Bernthal.
Ben and Jon nailed the ideal comedic chemistry of estranged brothers who can still get under each other’s skin, a missed opportunity in the original, which hardly had the duo sharing screen space until a completely dramatic finale.
While Anna Kendrick won’t be returning as accountant Dana Cummings, the sequel includes some returning faces from the original, Daniella Pineda takes on another ruthless assassin with another type of acquired savant syndrome, which Christian, Ben’s character, also possesses, accounting for his forensic accounting skills. Though her own character’s tragic history never quite reaches its full potential (perhaps something for the trilogy), Daniella lends the role a sinister intensity, along with some butt-kicking chops to spice up the franchise’s male-dominated action.
And while Christian and Brax’s parents are hardly referenced in this installment, letting the brothers focus on mending their own relationship, another familial crisis takes over as they seek to reunite an immigrant mother with her son after they were both trafficked.
Still, the family dynamics of the film do succeed in pulling on the heartstrings. And while no one’s journey may necessarily resolve as hoped by audiences, they all do end up finding what they ultimately require, whether that’s a stray cat, an ideal office chair or good old-fashioned revenge.
