The Accountant 2 (MA) – 133 minutes

To say there is a lot going on in The Accountant 2 is an understatement.

It is a high stakes crime thriller with comedic elements.

The sequel to 2016’s The Accountant reunites screenwriter Bill Dubuque and director Gavin O’Connor with stars Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal.

Importantly, you need not have seen the original to appreciate this sequel, as it stands alone quite comfortably.

Christian Wolff (Affleck) is decidedly different. He is the antihero with a rare combination of genius and combat prowess.

He works for organisations that are often shady, at best.

He is neurodivergent and rarely shows emotion. His strait-laced approach sees him struggle to hold down a relationship.

His brother, Braxton (Bernthal), whom he hasn’t seen in eight years, is two years his junior and a contract killer.

The two are drawn together after the semi-retired ex deputy director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Ray King (JK Simmons), is killed.

In his dying moments, King tried to reach out to Wolff to track down a woman named Edith Sanchez.

Sanchez disappeared with her husband and then five-year-old son after crossing into the US from El Salvador eight years ago.

It is left to King’s former subordinate, Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), now installed as deputy director, to pick up the pieces.

Largely due to the brothers, she uncovers a ruthless international cartel that will stop at nothing to keep their secrets buried.

She also comes face to face with a shadowy contract killer known only as Anais (Daniella Pineda).

Like The Accountant, there is complexity in the narrative here.

Suffice to say, even if you don’t follow all the threads, you can still appreciate the tenor of what is going down.

The relationship between the brothers is critical and, often, hilarious.

Chris’ lack of conventional thought processes frustrates Brax no end, not to overlook the fact that prior to this latest all-business offering, Chris hasn’t reached out to him.

Mind you, Brax comes across as gung ho … all guns blazing.

Affleck and Bernthal play their parts particularly well, bouncing off each other with ease. Also watch out for one of the best scenes in the movie, which sees Affleck line dancing.

Beyond that, Affleck fits comfortably into the role of a man whose logical mind can, in an instant, switch to that of lethal assassin.

And that is something that he has in common with Brax, to whom Bernthal brings exuberance.

Cynthia Addai-Robinson plays Marybeth as sympathetic and empathetic – a competent agent challenged to circumvent the system to obtain results.

While she can argue with the methods to which the brothers resort, she can’t question their effectiveness.

Daniella Pineda is introspective and slippery as Anais.

Action-packed, The Accountant 2 is far-fetched, tense and dramatic. It is a good looking, enjoyable roller coaster ride, enlivened by Affleck and Bernthal.

Director O’Connor has a good grip on the reins and knows when to loosen them to enable the siblings to score brownie points off each other.

Rated MA, The Accountant 2 scores a 7½ out of 10.