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The Five Best Movies Featuring an Accountant

By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under Seriously Random Lists | Comments (47)

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It’s tax day. Although, given the nerdish predilections of the typical Pajiba reader, I’m sure it’s meaningless to most of you, as you probably finished your taxes before the first of February. I kid, I kid. Of course, since we attract the highest number of unemployed readers on the web (According to Ass, Pulled Out of), most of you didn’t even have to file taxes this year. Congratulations!

But, we do try to keep our Seriously Random Lists topical, from time to time. And as such, here’s the best I could muster for tax day: The Five Best Movies Featuring an Accountant, faux or otherwise.

5. Harold Crick (Will Ferrell) in Stranger than Fiction

4. William Blake (Johnny Depp) in Dead Man

3. Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller) in Zero Effect (he pretended to be an accountant)

2. Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbons) in Shawshank Redemption

1. C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) in The Apartment

And since it would be impossible to debate the above list (the universe is small, and these are inarguable the best choices), you may use the comment section, instead, to discuss which actor or actress looks most like a real-life accountant. I’ll start: Billy Crudup.









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Comments

Awesome call on Deadman

Honorable mention should go to Rick Moranis in Ghostbusters.

Accountant-looking-actor would be Stanley Tucci

Posted by: badalamenti at April 15, 2009 11:11 AM

Stanley Tucci

Posted by: Sofía's Identical Hand Twin at April 15, 2009 11:12 AM

Jinx!

Posted by: Sofía's Identical Hand Twin at April 15, 2009 11:13 AM

Wasn't Andy Dufresne a banker?

Steve Buscemi looks like an accountant. On crack.

Posted by: Kolby at April 15, 2009 11:13 AM

Pinch-Poke Buy me a coke

Posted by: badalamenti at April 15, 2009 11:14 AM

John Hodgeman.

I really really need to see The Apartment one of these days.

Posted by: Julie at April 15, 2009 11:15 AM

Kevin Spacey.

Wasn't Andy Dufresne a banker?

"Yeah, fuckin' a. I don't need no smart wife-killing banker to tell me where the bear shit in the buckwheat."
He does end up doing all the prison guards' taxes and cooking the Warden's books.

Posted by: branded at April 15, 2009 11:21 AM

Priorities, Julie. The Apartment can wait. Watch Con Air first.

Posted by: Sofía's Identical Hand Twin at April 15, 2009 11:21 AM

Accountant-looking actor: James Cromwell

Posted by: Helena at April 15, 2009 11:23 AM

Yeah, I'm pretty sure Elmo Blatch calls Andy "some hotshot banker ... and he's the one they pinned it on!"

I can see a younger William H. Macy as an accountant ... or a car salesman ... or a cooler ...whatever you need. He even has an accountant's name.

Now that I think about it, movies with/about car salesmen would make a good list. "Used Cars" with Kurt Russell, "Fargo," what was the one with Tim Robbins and Robin Williams called, is that "Cadillac Man"?

Can't think of an occasion like Tax Day for it, tho.

Posted by: , (the commenter formerly known as bucdaddy) at April 15, 2009 11:24 AM

Richard Jenkins

Posted by: chad at April 15, 2009 11:26 AM

William H. Macy. Can't you see that face peering out at you from a fridge-magnet calendar?

Posted by: stardust savant at April 15, 2009 11:30 AM

Tilda Swinton

Posted by: annoyingmouse at April 15, 2009 11:31 AM

OH! and Idris Elba. C'mon, you'd let him do your taxes for you.

I'll bet he's good at it, too.

Posted by: annoyingmouse at April 15, 2009 11:32 AM

Accountant looking actor: Christopher Lloyd, circa "Suburban Commando".

Also, Leo Bloom should be on this frakkin' list. (Either incarnation, but my money's on Wilder.)

Posted by: Doctor Controversy at April 15, 2009 11:37 AM

Aw, C.C. Baxter. I just love Jack Lemmon. Awesome list, Dustin.

Posted by: Marcela at April 15, 2009 11:42 AM

No love for Charles Grodin in Midnight Run?

Posted by: lurker at April 15, 2009 11:43 AM

I'll go with Rachel Weisz as an accountant-type.

At least, in my weird H & R Block fantasy, it's always her. All business-suited and glasses, kind of like early on in The Mummy.

Posted by: TK at April 15, 2009 11:44 AM

I'm with you on Midnight Run. That's one of those movies that I'll watch anytime I'm channel surfing and it pops up.

Posted by: Codeman at April 15, 2009 11:49 AM

Ooh, and we forgot to add Ben Kingley as Izhak Stern (I'm not looking up the spelling) in Schindler's list.

Sofia, maybe I'll watch Con Air and The Apartment back to back. Just to make my head go 'splodey.

Posted by: Julie at April 15, 2009 11:56 AM

*Kingsley

Posted by: Julie at April 15, 2009 11:57 AM

I have to say, I appreciate seeing Stranger Than Fiction on any given "Best" list. I'm not saying it was one of my favorite movies of all time, but I really liked that film, and I've heard nothing but bitching about it from my friends.

So good on you, Rowles!

Posted by: vercordio at April 15, 2009 12:04 PM

Zero Effect is awesome.

Posted by: Eep at April 15, 2009 12:14 PM

Oh man, as an accountant in my real life, I totally approve of this list. Good call on C.C. Baxter -- slightly neurotic, totally passionate, great overall guy. That's pretty much the accounting profession in a nutshell.

As far as TV accountants go, you gotta love Sol Starr on Deadwood. Nobody can exchange teaching accounting for, erm, something that rhymes with "junt" as well as he does.

Posted by: qualler at April 15, 2009 12:17 PM

How can such a horrible profession get a great representation in movies? Of course, most of these are depressed, dissatisfied accountants, as most of them seem to be.

Oooh and how about Lewis is Ghostbusters? HE HAS A PARTY WITH ALL OF HIS CLIENTS. Then gets turned into a crazy ass demon dog. Go, Lewis!

Posted by: figgy at April 15, 2009 12:17 PM

Charles Martin Smith in the Untouchables. He went after tax evaders with a shotgun.

Posted by: Tranjo at April 15, 2009 12:23 PM

How about Jack Coleman (eyeglasses-wearing creepster Noah Bennett on Heroes)?

Posted by: The Pink Hulk at April 15, 2009 12:28 PM

Have you all forgotten the greatest accountant of all time?

Gene Wilder? As Mr. Bloom? In THE PRODUCERS?

Sheesh. Sometimes, you people....

Posted by: Withnail at April 15, 2009 12:44 PM

Isn't James Spader character an accountant in Stone's "Wall Street"? If he isn't I know there must have been an accountant(s) there, SOMEWHERE.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at April 15, 2009 12:52 PM

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Posted by: kate at April 15, 2009 12:52 PM

I would have been pissed if Harold Crick was not included on this list. HOORAY! GREAT INCLUSIONS!!!

Posted by: ChristianH at April 15, 2009 1:03 PM

I'm with Withnail.

Posted by: and I at April 15, 2009 1:03 PM

Any post that encourages others to see Zero Effect is a major winner by my standards.

Posted by: Clarence Boddicker at April 15, 2009 2:05 PM

lurker>> Great call!

"Why aren't you popular with the Chicago police department?"

Posted by: DarthCorleone at April 15, 2009 3:23 PM

Withnail>> Good one from you as well!

Posted by: DarthCorleone at April 15, 2009 3:25 PM

James Spader was a lawyer in "Wall Street," but he was an accountant in "Bad Influence" with Rob Lowe.

Posted by: onekey at April 15, 2009 3:26 PM

Micheal Douglas in "Falling Down". I'm not sure what his profession was supposed to be, but he sure looked like an accountant. On a murderous rampage. I hate Douglas, but I love the idea of this show. Who hasn't wanted to knife a gay-bashing Nazi at one point or another?


Posted by: Xtreme at April 15, 2009 3:38 PM

In Zero Effect, Bill Pullman pretends to be the accountant, not Ben Stiller.

Posted by: JakesAlterEgo at April 15, 2009 4:01 PM

I clicked on this link thinking, "they better HOPE they didn't forget Dead Man, boy..."

And you didn't. Nice work!

And, yes, I was also under the impression that Andy of Shawshank was a banker.

Posted by: jkate at April 15, 2009 5:00 PM

I'm okay with your choices but you got your order all wrong. should have had Shawshank at number 1, the Apartment at 2 and Stranger than Fiction at 3.

Posted by: EricD at April 15, 2009 5:42 PM

C'mon. How can there be no mention of Midnight Run? FAIL!!

Posted by: P Mo D at April 15, 2009 6:06 PM

the chartered accountants from Meaning of Life

Posted by: lwoodpdowd at April 15, 2009 10:19 PM

Accountant-looking actor: James Cromwell

Posted by: Helena at April 15, 2009 11:23 AM

I dunno... he sorta looks like lawyer or CEO to me. Now Gary Sinise has accountant written all over him. Tobey Maguire also looks like he could play a junior accountant

Posted by: Colombo at April 16, 2009 3:14 AM

What?? No love for Charles Grodin as Jonathan Mardukas in "Midnight Run"? That character was freaking hilarious.

These things go down! They go down!!

Posted by: Carolina Girl at April 16, 2009 2:28 PM

Eva Green in Casino Royale.

Posted by: Starwarsfan at April 16, 2009 6:02 PM

No Schindler's List or The Producers? F'real?

Posted by: kayla at April 16, 2009 6:24 PM

a little late to the party hear, but nobody mentioned Michael Showalter in The Baxter. I liked that movie...

Posted by: Kyle at April 22, 2009 5:51 PM