The Accountant review

The Accountant review

If you're in the mood for R-rated action this weekend, you have two options waiting at the cinema tonight.

Mel Gibson is back directing, and his latest effort is a brutal war story called Hacksaw Ridge. The other is about an accountant.

In a year of predictable plot lines, bad dialogue and mediocre action set-pieces - yep, I'm talking to you, Jack Reacher - The Accountant blows in from left-field in a John Wick kind of way, and what a breath of fresh air that is.

Ben Affleck is our titular accountant, and he's very good with numbers, guns and killing people.

Clearly this is not your usual, everyday kind of accountant.

A math savant firmly on the autistic spectrum and raised by his father to handle life's challenges categorically and unapologetically, this accountant backs his choices up with quite an arsenal.

When a goodly number of your clients are somewhat dodgy mobsters and arms dealers, it pays to be good with numbers, guns and killing people.

Far from a movie by the numbers, The Accountant cooks the books to perfection, serving up a nourishing feast of R-rated action, refreshingly engaging characters and a script that kept me guessing - liberally peppered with some delectably spicy left-field laughs. It's the most fun I've had with an accountant in years.

Four-and-a-half stars.

     The Accountant:: Director: Gavin O'Connor :: Starring: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, Jon Bernthal, Alison Wright, J.K. Simmons, John Lithgow, Jeffrey Tambor:: Rating: R16 - violence and offensive language:: Running Time: 128 minutes:: Release Date: In cinemas now

Newshub.