Ben Affleck plays a highly-functioning autistic man who cracks books by day and skulls by night, squashing threats of both a physical and financial nature for a wide range of criminal enterprises.
I appreciate the basic concept, of a man with zero social capabilities who finds rhythm and peace in his very precise, specific line(s) of work, but the surrounding story is so worried about pulling one over on the viewer that it often feels too clever for its own good. Character motivations are a major issue, for example, with many players making an absurd, nonsensical about-face at crunch time. Even the anti-hero protagonist isn't immune to this, having less than no time for his female counterpart (Anna Kendrick) one day, then suddenly risking life and limb for her the next. That disconnect badly affects their on-screen relationship, far more than the abundant personality quirks brought about by his disorder.
Affleck is great in the lead role, delivering precisely the mix of nerdy intellect and rough physical wherewithal necessary to bridge the two core aspects of his character. He works very well as both an antisocial genius and a ruthless, methodical, cold-blooded killer, and makes us forget about how unlikely a pairing that really is. That makes me think there's potential for more films in this franchise, even if its gimmicky, over-twisted first plot was a letdown.
Review by drqshadowBlockedParent2020-01-30T16:31:47Z
Ben Affleck plays a highly-functioning autistic man who cracks books by day and skulls by night, squashing threats of both a physical and financial nature for a wide range of criminal enterprises.
I appreciate the basic concept, of a man with zero social capabilities who finds rhythm and peace in his very precise, specific line(s) of work, but the surrounding story is so worried about pulling one over on the viewer that it often feels too clever for its own good. Character motivations are a major issue, for example, with many players making an absurd, nonsensical about-face at crunch time. Even the anti-hero protagonist isn't immune to this, having less than no time for his female counterpart (Anna Kendrick) one day, then suddenly risking life and limb for her the next. That disconnect badly affects their on-screen relationship, far more than the abundant personality quirks brought about by his disorder.
Affleck is great in the lead role, delivering precisely the mix of nerdy intellect and rough physical wherewithal necessary to bridge the two core aspects of his character. He works very well as both an antisocial genius and a ruthless, methodical, cold-blooded killer, and makes us forget about how unlikely a pairing that really is. That makes me think there's potential for more films in this franchise, even if its gimmicky, over-twisted first plot was a letdown.