The Movie Guru: ‘The Accountant 2’ a mixed bag, while ‘The Hating Game’ shines with fantastic leads

The Accountant 2 (in theaters)

How you feel about “The Accountant 2” will depend on how you feel about the original.

The sequel is a more dramatic, messier, funnier version of the 2016 original, leaning into some of its strengths while making brand-new mistakes. If you didn’t have any interest in the first film, or didn’t like it, this new one isn’t going to change your mind. If you really enjoyed the first one, you might be disappointed by the changes. If you liked the first movie but thought it was too muted in tone, you’ll enjoy the changes. If your favorite part of the original was the relationship between Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal, you’re really going to like this one.

The movie starts with the murder of J.K. Simmons’s character, and he leaves a note asking to find the Accountant (Ben Affleck). His former protege does, and the accountant/assassin ropes in his mercenary brother to help solve the case. As the two try to untangle a web of human trafficking, they also try to figure out how to be brothers.

Like the original, “The Accountant 2” is an action movie that’s relatively light on action. A lot of it focuses on Affleck’s character’s way of looking at the world, which is a form of autism-as-superpower that also manages to be incredibly isolating. Some people might see the portrayal as offensively inaccurate, but the movie also casts actual autistic people for Affleck’s teenage hacker crew. Not a traditional form of representation, perhaps, but certainly something different.

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Just like this movie.

Grade: Two and a half stars

The Hating Game (Netflix)

When it comes to romance movies, chemistry between the leads is vital. If the movie is bad, or just boring, good chemistry can make it still watchable. If a movie is solid, good chemistry can turn it into a delight.

Thankfully, the two leads of “The Hating Game” have exactly the right kind of chemistry. The plot may be heavy on contrivances and light on buildup, but the spark between Lucy Hale and Austin Stowell’s characters keep you interested. It adds credence to an emotional connection between them, and makes sexy times just a little bit sexier. No matter how many ridiculous misunderstandings happen, you can’t help wanting these two to work out.

The two star as rivals in the same publishing company who have very different approaches to life. They’re both sure they can’t stand each other, which means it catches them by surprise when fixation starts turning into attraction. As they battle over a potential promotion, the duo have to decide whether their relationship is real or just another game.

The movie lets itself be steamier than a lot of modern romances, particularly outside of strictly defined sex scenes. It never pushes past its R rating, but the physicality adds weight to the transition between animosity and romance. It also makes their growing emotional connection feel that much sweeter, with both parts of the relationship giving the other more depth. Hale and Stowell both do an excellent job selling their half of the story, turning their natural chemistry into something special.

In the end, isn’t that what romance is really all about?

Grade: Three stars

Jenniffer Wardell is an award-winning movie critic and member of the Denver Film Critics Society. Drop her a line at themovieguruslc@gmail.com.