[Warning: spoiler alert]
Synopsis: Christian Wolff is a math savante with more affinity for numbers than people. Behind the cover of a small-town CPA office, he works as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations. With the Treasury Department’s Crime Enforcement Division, run by Ray King, starting to close in, Christian takes on a legitimate client: a state-of-the-art robotics company where an accounting clerk has discovered a discrepancy involving millions of dollars. But as Christian uncooks the books and gets closer to the truth, it is the body count that starts to rise. -IMDb
Development & story:
I’ll admit, I never expected to walk out of the theater so satisfied and wanting to see more. I will say that the buildup towards the action did take a while. In retrospect, however, I can see that this was necessary to balance out the accountant side of Wolff with the trained killer side. I’m glad the action didn’t overshadow the development of his character. While it took longer than expected, it was definitely worth the wait. The backlog of reveals and plot twists at the end completely destroyed any expectations I had going in.
The plot is so multi-layered, it’s almost hard to keep up, but not enough to lose any enjoyment. However, that’s probably one of the reason I’d like to watch it again. There’s so many great scenes and moments. It’s similar to rewatching a movie like The Matrix where each revisit reveals more depth than the first time around. A great movie for intellectuals who enjoy the bigger ideas like myself.
Stone cold killer as accountant? Cool. He’s a high functioning autisic, using a weakness as a strength? Awesome. He seems very quirky and awkward but wants to helps people? Love it. Strong themes of family, compassion, and overcoming adversity? My feels.
Characters & acting:
Ben Affleck was phenomenal in bringing this character to life. I personally loved Christian Wolff-Affleck over Batman-Affleck, and definitely one of the best performances and character I’ve seen him play. Both downright ruthless, but Christian is a stone cold killer with the quirks that you can’t help but cheer on.
While there were no shortcomings with the rest of the cast, Affleck steals the show.
Themes:
Family and Loyalty
I’m always a sucker for anything regarding family loyalty. Amidst the action and plot development, Wolff is constantly being reminded of his past and where he came from. His family history and tensions play a big part in who he is and his motivations as the plot develops. We later find out that his family is at the top of his list.
“We all just want to connect with people”
Absolutely loved this line when Anna’s character Dana began to learn who Christian really was. Even though someone like him has trouble interacting with others the way “normal” people do, the deeper motivation to connect is still just as strong in someone who can seem as cold and calculating as a computer.
“When you put society’s standards on children, their expeditions will be low and stay low. But when you allow them the opportunity to thrive in how they’re different, they can have amazing potential”
At first I was a bit on guard with how Christian’s father didn’t cut his son any slack. However, it’s apparent that the tough love and brutal training he put his sons through paid off. Seeing how far his son could go, while dangerous, proved that the limits we set for ourselves and the limits society sets can be surpassed.
“You’re different. Sooner or later, different scares people. You think if you don’t fight back, they’ll like you, stop picking on you… victim or not, make a decision”
We’re all different and have been, at one point or another, treated differently. Many times we cannot change the circumstances that makes us different. But does give us the right to act like the victim, or should we stand up and take responsibility? Christian shows us that it takes courage to overcome those challenges, to move forward and don’t give up on yourself.
Conclusion:
Overall, the movie was skillfully done and delivered in so many ways that I definitely did not expect. It’s not hard to connect with a character who has the courage to fight through his flaws and persist in staying true to himself. I think it’s fair to say we can see a bit of ourselves in Christian Wolff
Rating: 9.5/10
Marlo Yonocruz 