The Accountant 2

Nine years after the original surprised me with its quirky combination of math and firepower, Ben Affleck is back as Christian Wolff in THE ACCOUNTANT 2.

As the film opens, Ray King (a returning JK Simmons) is trapped in the middle of a clandestine meeting gone bad. He writes "Find the Accountant" on his arm in his dying moments, and his partner Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) does just that.

Affleck digs a bit deeper into Christian this time out, delivering both humor and mystery in style.

Wolff's time at a speed dating event is damn funny and Affleck deftly reveals additional layers of Christian's very complicated personality.

Medina and Wolff quickly uncover a multilevel crime conspiracy that covers so many felonies that I frankly found it all a bit confusing. If you're going to put a literal bus full of children in terrifying danger for half the film, it's key that the viewer at least understands why they're in that position.

While the individual elements of the story are interesting, they never really came together for me, BUT, I'm not saying I didn't enjoy the hell out of this sequel that has the guts to reach for more than the original on every level.

Thankfully for all involved, Christian reaches out for his lethal brother, Braxton, personified perfectly by the astonishingly reliable Jon Bernthal (The Amateur, Fury, Sicario). Bernthal delivers relentless laughs and action as the brother decidedly on the other side of the law. And we all know that Christian doesn't exactly operate within the lines.

I loved the scene in which Braxton and Christian invite three prostitutes, oops, I mean sex workers (whatever) to a dive motel. I had no idea what they were doing but loved where this scene went and how it drove the story forward.

There is a lot of story between the actions scenes, but all of them deliver when they arrive.

The finale is one of the best shoot 'em up conclusions since Newman and Redford took on half of Bolivia in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid". Fans of that film will likely find a shot in the finale that looks very familiar.

I really loved the team behind Christian, it's a unique take that I didn't see coming.

Daniella Pineda (Jurassic World) is also very good as Anais, a very lethal killing machine weaving in and out of the story.

I loved the pacing of the film and spending time with Christian and Braxton. If you see them line dancing in a country bar, I'd suggest you just leave them be.

Director Gavin O'Connor (The Accountant, The Way Back) and Affleck have created one of the most original action heroes in recent history. Using his brain and bullets in equal measure, Wolff has returned in a very worthy sequel, blasting its way to a very solid B+.