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Aziz Ansari's directorial debut, this fantasy comedy by actor the director, has been struggling in theaters. Many reasons may explain its performance: Its uninspired title fails to express its movie's distinctive charm. The script can be moralizing and heavy-handed regarding its themes. The performances seem flat and staged, as if the actors were reading lines straight from a script. Moreover, it arrives at a time of economic uncertainty and disparity, that may make viewers not very open to a story that suggests rich people enjoy all the benefits while the poor possess heart.

But, this is where Good Fortune stands out: The film is original, daring, imaginative, often humorous, and certainly relevant. And, it offers an unexpectedly enjoyable the actor hangout experience.

Reeves in the role of Angel: His Typical Performance

I have never considered Keanu Reeves a strong actor. The actor's flat speaking style and consistent expression of slight concern has always felt limited, regardless of his broad range of roles he's played over the past 40 years. Astute directors have often cast Reeves in roles in which that rigidity fits ideally, from his early work to The Matrix to the action series. Yet almost all of those characters required him to seem tough, closed-off, and detached.

In the film, Reeves portrays Gabriel, one low-level guardian celestial being assigned with looking after individuals who use their phones when behind the wheel. His whole job involves remaining in their cars and lightly touching the drivers' shoulders as they're close to have an accident, warning them so the driver stop in time. However, when positioned high above the city, gazing on the mortal world similar to an alternative interpretation of the angel from Wim Wenders' classic movie Wings of Desire, Gabriel gets aspirational. He desires to become a great protector and rescuer of wayward souls.

The Surprising Shift: Keanu Playing a Human

So, he reveals himself to struggling handyman Arj (played by the director), who is residing out of his car and cursing his situation. Gabriel proceeds to swaps the man with the life of stupidly rich businessman Jeff (played by Seth Rogen). The point of the exercise was that Arj to understand the wealthy man's life has major drawbacks, and gratefully go back to his original life, much like a figure from It's a Wonderful Life.

Issue was, Arj right away discovers that the mogul's issues (boring meetings, a pricey heating bill) prove negligible and easily solved using wealth. He further sees how becoming affluent opens up limitless chances for pleasurable fun. The character has zero interest in returning to his previous situation, and Gabriel can't compel Arj to go back. Then, additional trouble comes: For overstepping his duties and disrupting the order of the world, the character is fired as an celestial job, and turned into a human being.

The Revelation: The Actor Grins

I was not convinced by the actor playing an celestial being with big dreams and a burning wish to make a difference. Reeves turns in the same vaguely constipated acting he's consistently providing for at least the past 3 decades. Viewing him in the role of celestial being who's recently turned human for the first time, on the other hand, was a blast, for a reason that really astonished viewers at first: This is something new for the actor. Or perhaps to be precise, something from the past.

Soon during the character's confusing experience as a human, staying with Jeff (whom the angel exchanged with the handyman's hand-to-mouth life and jobless situation), Gabriel begins tentatively experimenting with human activities such as chewing and consuming food. And the actor smiles. Authentically, hesitantly, happily beams. (It's far much believable than the smile shown in the promotional image, which looks digitally altered.)

The Reason That Grin Matters

The moment really took me aback to realize how surprising and refreshing that expression felt. At what point did we last audiences observed the actor grin in a film where he was not showing ill will, sarcasm, or resentment? He likely tries it at some point in the recent ill-conceived Bill & Ted Face the Music, but I am not going to revisiting the mess to find out. Reeves has remained typecast with serious, violent, broody, or simply serious roles for so long that merely seeing Reeves grin felt like seeing an entirely different performer.

As the story goes on, Gabriel ends up needing to get a kitchen job, a role that fails to provide enough to live on, and he begins smoking heavily due to disappointment. Simply the image of the actor in a disposable paper food-service hat, his late-career signature long hair tied in an unglamorous ponytail, leaning against a wall and smoking a cigarette, proves worthy of the price of admission. His kitchen worker getup completely changes his appearance and posture: Unexpectedly, the slim, well-dressed physical powerhouse of the John Wick movies becomes awkward, unglamorous, and a lot more relatable.

The Pleasure of Watching Reeves Loosen Up

The film isn't consistently enjoyable to watch, especially when Ansari (that also authored the screenplay) must find plausible explanations for {Ar