Character actor Ray McKinnon (trust me, you know his face) is also an Oscar-winning director! The Oscar-winning short, The Accountant, and a later feature Randy & the Mob, both quirky and hilarious, are on Blu-ray via Lightyear.
The Films
Ray McKinnon is a writer-director-actor-producer you might not recognize by name, but likely do by face for his character actor roles out and about, such as the punchy new beau in my favorite Coen Brothers movie, O Brother Where Art Thou, the preacher in Deadwood, or a slew of other notable character roles. The rest of that multi-hyphenate has led to several features and shorts across the years, mostly with his best pal Walton Goggins, another character actor supreme. Lightyear Entertainment has just released two of these onto Blu-ray: The Accountant and Randy & the Mob. Both films are very funny and filled with a quirky Southern charm. I dug ‘em.
The Accountant
No, this isn’t the Ben Affleck autistic assassin flick, but a wonderfully off-kilter short from 2001. One that won the Oscar for Short Narrative! Two brothers, played by Walton Goggins and Eddie King, are in deep on their farm. So they bring in the titular character, striking a Faustian bargain with a man known only as The Accountant, played with a wonderful strangeness by McKennon. The Account can fix their problems, but he has own way about it. His methods are weird, in a continual state of light inebriation, counting on his hands and feet, and working in a different mental sphere than others; his influence extends in uncouth ways. It’s a delightfully weird journey as he calculates everything (the percentages a character’s wife is cheating and the like), and maybe uncovers a massive conspiracy? Or is he off his rocker? McKinnon directs with a sense of fun and joy, a peppy quickness, and humor to the dialogue, which leads me to see why it won the Oscar. A solid 37 minutes.
Oddly, this film is released on its own and also as a special feature on the disc for Randy & The Mob.
Randy & The Mob
The log line for Randy & The Mob might seem similar to the Accountant, I’ll admit. But it’s not a feature-length version of the above, even if some aspects are carried over. If it works, go for it; more people see a feature, so go for it. That said, Randy & The Mob is also an off-kilter, strange independent comedy with plenty of fun characters and situations, sharp writing, and an enjoyable time.
Randy, our titular character, is over-extended, with a storage unit business (he’ll remind you it’s air conditioning), a gas station (to which he’s having a price war with the more established neighbor), and more. In arrears with the IRS and everyone, he gets the help of two local mob-types, who send a fixer to get Randy in order, or else.
This time, the money man is Walton Goggins, playing Tito Armani. And as much as I enjoyed McKinnon’s oddball in the first film, Goggins is on a whole other level with an utterly bizarre go-for-broke performance. Clearly working on the spectrum, but not a caricature of such, Goggins relishes the oddity. He speaks with a specific style, knows far more about anything than expected, and has a way about moving around and gaining the approval of everyone he meets. Man can clog! He’s slightly out of sync with everyone around, and that endears him to the residents of the Georgia town. I’m glad Goggins has had a big career boost in recent years with Righteous Gemstones and Fallout, but he’s always been a fantastic and reliable actor, given perfectly tuned, notably odd performances, and he’s in top form here, working with his close friend, with the chemistry of a strong friendship transferring to film.
McKennon plays twin brothers, Randy and Cecil. He performs the dual roles quite well, keeping a rein on what could be too much. Across the films above and here, he proves himself to be a great character actor (even if Randy is the lead, go with me). Randy is the sort of guy who is just unlikable. He’s a little pushy and in his head, not realizing how he’s coming across. But not the unlikable in dammit, I hate him or an across-the-board annoying, mean, or overbearing. He’s our lead after all, and he’s great to watch as he flails from situation to situation. But he’s the sort of guy who’s kinda a shrug. But that means he can have some good character growth with the shift Armani brings to his life. McKennon adds even more to his stacked resume in the film by playing Randy’s twin brother Cecil, a gay man running an antique shop with his husband. At times, the performance can slide a little too much into stereotype, but mostly stays good as a compelling character.
It’s a buffet of solid supporting characters and the actors to go with. Do the Right Thing’s Bill Nunn plays the manager of the public storage. McKinnon’s real-life wife plays his long-suffering film wife (sadly, she passed away not long after this film, which she also produced). Brent Briscoe is the town cop, holding a long-standing grudge from a 6th-grade fight, who delights in tormenting Randy. Vic Polizos and Orange is the the New Black’s Paul Ben-Victor relish in as the mob guys. And did I mention Burt Freakin’ Reynolds for a single scene? (McKinnon and Burt were in the same X-Files episode and hit it off) Everyone is clearly enjoying themselves, and that brings energy.
There’s a nice ease in McKinnon’s storytelling. He’s not going huge, keeping a small hum of a quick indie from a capable, experienced hand, and it works. There’s nothing splashy about the visuals and methods; point and shoot on real-life locations with enough technical setup to make it work. But I dug the lived-in world, since it was filming around the town of Villa Rica, Georgia. In the features and an interview I read of McKinnon recently, he was looking for just that, being a Southern film without being a SOUTHERN film. I spent a large amount of my life in the South, in small towns and larger (although Charleston isn’t that big), and he does present that vibe, avoiding the stereotypes and vernacular peculiarities Hollywood likes to put on the region.
Randy & The Mob is a funny, quirky film with a great life to it as Randy and his circle deal with all the issues Randy’s continually bumbling actions bring. Not a life-changing film, but a solid watch with great humor and characters, especially in Walton Goggins. For someone looking for something off the beaten path and underseen, check it out. It won’t change your world, but you’ll have a good time.
The Package
Standard sort here, disc in case with the normal poster/info sleeve.
The Presentation
Both films look fine for their microbudget digital indie. Nothing particularly special, maybe a little “motion smoothing, too real” look for the feature. But it’s not distracting; the nature of the beast. The focus is on characters and what they do more than how pretty it is. Both in English with subtitles.
The Features
The Accountant disc is just that, a nearly 40-minute short.
Randy & the Mob includes the Accountant as well, and a 25-minute behind-the-scenes featurette. It’s a good one, with sweet stories from the set, working in Georgia in August (HOT, SWEATY, BUGS), and putting it together on a microbudget and time crunch.
Final Thoughts
Randy & the Mob and The Accountant are a delightful pair of Southern-fried off-kilter comedies with wonderful characters and moments. Coming in, I was aware of McKinnon as an actor but didn’t know of his films as writer-director, and I’m glad I saw these. Seek out if looking for something different. Both films are released on Blu-Ray from Lightyear Entertainment.