Greetings again from the darkness. As disappointing as most sequels are, there is a glimmer of hope when the original creative team and key cast members return. Such is the case with this sequel to the 2016 film, THE ACCOUNTANT (yes, it’s been nearly a decade). Director Gavin O’Connor and writer Bill Dubuque are back, and both have skins on the wall. O’Connor also directed MIRACLE (2004) and the criminally underrated WARRIOR (2011), while Dubuque was the creator of the hit series “Ozark”.
Two-time Oscar winner Ben Affleck returns as the brilliant and autistic accountant known as Christian Wolff (as well as a few other names). In what may be the least amount of screen time ever afforded a previous Oscar winner, JK Simmons’ Ray King – former director of FinCEN is assassinated, and his former protégé MaryBeth Medina (a returning Cynthia Asdai-Robinson) tracks down Christian to help solve the case. But, of course, things are never that easy, and they also find themselves knee deep in another case – one that hits mighty close to real world headlines with human trafficking and gang activity.
Christian contacts his lethal-weapon brother … yep, for the first time since the end of the first film … and Braxton (Jon Bernthal) reluctantly agrees to join the hunt. The two brothers interact in a manner we’re familiar with from all the ‘mismatched buddy films’ over the years, and Affleck and especially Bernthal excel at this, although it’s impossible not to note Affleck’s too-frequent smirks this time around. An early speed-dating sequence feels totally forced and out-of-place, and one can only assume it’s included for anyone who didn’t watch the first movie (which I highly recommend prior to viewing this one).
As good as the brother banter plays, the mish-mashed stories, lack of central villain, and over abundance of action sequences, turn this into a film trying too hard to please all audiences. Toss in extended segments featuring the autistic techno geniuses at Harbor Neuroscience Academy, and a description of Acquired Savant Syndrome, and the best advice is to just sit back and watch after turning off your own plot-solving brain cells. Christian has developed and funded the group of young geniuses at the Academy, and they are led by non-verbal Justine (played by Allison Robertson, and computer-voiced by Alison Wright of “The Americans”). The missing persons case centers around highly-trained assassin Anais (Daniella Pineda from the Jurassic World franchise), and we can’t help but think she could hold her own as a story and character.
The abundance of comedic elements might surprise fans of the first film, as might the war zone style shootout during the film’s climax and the overly-animated Affleck – all extremes when compared to the original, yet Affleck and Bernthal make the brotherly thing work
Opens in theaters on April 25, 2025
Posted by David Ferguson 
There may be no such thing as a Free Lunch, but thanks to the USA Film Festival, there is something even better … FREE MOVIES! Of course, not all screenings are held at no charge, yet this remains an affordable and entertaining festival experience for all film lovers.
This year’s opening night event on April 23 is “The World of Nancy Kwan – A Salute to Nancy Kwan”. The breakout star of THE WORLD OF SUZIE WONG (1960) will participate in a book signing and an on-stage conversation, following a career retrospective including clips of her performances in film and television. Also on opening day, there is a Salute to renowned director Jon Avnet with a screening of his new film, THE LAST RODEO. Mr. Avnet will attend along with the film’s co-stars, Neal McDonough and Mykelti Williamson. All three were involved with the fantastic TV series, “Justified” and “Boomtown”, and Mr. Avnet is known for having directed FRIED GREEN TOMATOES (1991), as well as Broadway plays.
Greetings again from the darkness. We don’t typically look to South Korea for animated children’s stories recounting the history of Christianity, yet this first film from Angel Studio delivers just that … well specifically, the story of Jesus for Easter. Seong-ho Jang has made a name as a Visual Effects expert, and with this directorial debut, he tells the Jesus story in a way that should keep most kids engaged. The screenplay was written by director Jang, Rob Edwards, Jamie Thomason, and Hoseok Sung.
Greetings again from the darkness. Some folks just kind of float through life feeling ‘not seen’ … even though their inner voice speaks to them incessantly. This describes Clementine/Clem, a Pharmacy Technician who specializes in holding her tongue in most social and family situations. When her beloved dad dies, Clem is forced to cohabitate with her less than warm-hearted stepmom. This is the set-up for the first feature film from writer-director Miv Evans.
Greetings again from the darkness. While I’m unsure whether this qualifies as a tetraology, this oddball and zany film consists of four separate yet interrelated stories with crossover characters. Previous collaborations from the film’s co-writers and co-directors, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, include CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019), the underrated IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY (2010), and SUGAR (2008).
Greetings again from the darkness. Penguins are darn cute. A penguin that follows you around and chooses to live with you is almost too cute for words. But in this story inspired by true events, that’s exactly what happens. Directed by Peter Cattaneo (THE FULL MONTY, 1998), the film was adapted by screenwriter Jeff Pope (PHILOMENA, 2014) from Tom Michell’s 2015 book.
Greetings again from the darkness. St. Patrick’s Day 2025 marks the 35th anniversary of the single largest unsolved property theft in the world. On that day, thieves made off with hundreds of millions of dollars of artwork from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (including works by Vermeer, Rembrandt, Degas, and Manet). The reward offer of $10 million still stands. Writer-director Eric Aronson presents his feature film debut, inspired by the crime … though he admits, “this is not what happened.”
Greetings again from the darkness. The list of icons known by a single name is relatively short and includes such luminaries as Elvis, Prince, Cher, Bono, Beyonce, and Sting. Immediately recognizable with only her first name, Liza Minnelli also fits right in. Documentarian Bruce David Klein has delivered a tribute to her early years as the daughter of worshipped idol Judy Garland and famed film director Vicente Minnelli, and outlines her own path to stardom after tragedy to being recognized as one of the greatest performers of all time.
Greetings again from the darkness. Movies have focused on the burden of celebrity (A STAR IS BORN, BETTER MAN), the challenges facing journalists (SPOTLIGHT, SHATTERED GLASS), the lure of power and control (WALL STREET, THERE WILL BE BLOOD), and the impact of cults (MIDSOMMER, MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE), yet it’s the feature film directorial debut of Mark Anthony Green (who also wrote the screenplay) that attempts to tackle all of these topics. It’s an ambitious undertaking that has some moments, but mostly leaves us wishing it had chosen a path and delivered a strong message about something.
Greetings again from the darkness. Are you ready for 90 minutes of cool people wearing cool clothes and doing cool things while acting cool in the face of danger? If so, this one is for you. Oscar winner Steven Soderbergh (TRAFFIC, 2000; OCEAN’S ELEVEN, 2001; OCEAN’S TWELVE, 2004) dons multiple hats here as director-producer-editor-cinematographer (some under familiar pseudonyms). The screenplay comes from well-known writer David Koepp (JURASSIC PARK, 1993; MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, 1996). The pedigree of these two is exemplified by the cast assembled.
Movie Reviews from the Dark 