‘Good Fortune’ Review – Aziz Ansari’s Directorial Debut Gets Major Assist From Keanu Reeves

I can recall seeing the first trailer for Good Fortune and being a bit confused, but still intrigued because who wouldn’t want Keanu Reeves to be their guardian angel? At the time, I didn’t pay attention to the fact that it was written and directed by Aziz Ansari, known for portraying Tom Haverford on NBC’s Parks and Recreation and for creating and starring in the Netflix series Master of None. Through those endeavors alone, Ansari proved to be a comedic voice worth listening to, so Good Fortune, not only being written by him, but serving as his directorial debut, piqued my interest even more. What results is a comedy that means well and offers up a few laughs, mostly courtesy of Reeves, even if it doesn’t break new ground. It’s a serviceable comedy that isn’t a bad way to kill a little over 90 minutes.

Good Fortune takes on the familiar route of being a body swap story that hopefully shows someone who is down on their luck that having riches doesn’t always equal happiness. Anzari portrays Ari, a gig worker who takes on various odd jobs for the wealthy Jeff (Seth Rogen), a man who revels in his excess, complete with a disco club in his basement. Arj once worked as Jeff’s assistant but was let go from his position following a poor decision that was ultimately blown a bit out of proportion. Following his dismissal, Arj desires to have all the wealth and success that Jeff has, believing it will lead to a better life.

As Arj hits the lowest point of his life, a guardian angel steps into the picture named Gabriel (Reeves), who motivational speaking in Reeves’ signature tone, could prompt anyone to one a bit more for themselves. Gabriel’s visions of Arj’s future are funny in the sense that he believes anyone would want something more pure rather than the materialistic life that Jeff has crafted for himself. It’s hard not to chuckle when Gabriel shows Arj living a minimum wage life with his work partner Elena (Keke Palmer) as relatives come to verbal assaults over the smallest of issues. He even shows him that he’ll have to euthanize a dog he will come to own in the future.

Perhaps Gabriel isn’t approaching this guardian angel thing from all the right angles. What results is a body swap that doesn’t exactly show the pair exactly what Gabriel intends, which sees his wings being clipped and becoming human by fellow angel, Martha (Sandra Oh).
Even though the comedic elements don’t reinvent the wheel, there are some funny moments to be had. Despite Gabriel trying to show Arj that his life is worth living by swapping him with Jeff, Arj hilariously learns that most of his problems are solved by being filthy rich. In Jeff’s place, Arj galivants around Los Angeles in a Tesla and gets to throw disco club parties without a single care that he’ll run out of funds to facilitate his lavish lifestyle. In place of Arj, Jeff has to learn the grind of day-to-day minimum wage life, and even though some of these scenes become repetitive, Rogen makes the most of them thanks to his own impressive comedic skills.

It should come as new surprise that Reeves is a comedic wonder. We’ve seen some of these skills early in his career in films such as Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and its sequel, as well as lighter fare such as Something’s Gotta Give, and his supporting role in Always Be My Maybe. Hell, even his voice work illicit laughs, with his ultra serious take on Shadow in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, garnering great humor because he understood voicing that character completely straight. Reeves finds humor in Gabriel that comes from a very sincere place, particularly after his wings are clipped and he becomes human. Watching Reeves indulge in some of humanity’s best pleasures, such as devouring a hamburger, gets laughs because Reeves portrays it with straightforward honesty. The movie is at its best as Reeves’ Gabriel begins to understand the human condition.

Good Fortune does have heart; however, it threatens to dive into the cheesy side of things as the moral of its story becomes a bit more heavy-handed. As a human, Gabriel will understand why Arj desired to have Jeff’s life and why Jeff wants to return to his world of excess. Gabriel begins to see the value of life from a different perspective and realizes that, hey, it isn’t so bad wanting to have a little bit more to get by, and that having the good fortune of being rich isn’t so bad either. It’ll be interesting if audiences respond to the more sentimental aspects of the story, but at least they’re approached from a sincere place, and all three of the principal leads are game to sell it. It’s all in how we use it, and Arj becoming a bit more of an asshole has less to do with suddenly becoming rich and more to do with his decision to go down that route all on his own. Palmer is also worthy of a mention as someone who works at a hardware store with Arj and uses all of her tenacity to fight for better conditions at work. While the unionize commentary doesn’t get the attention it deserves, it means well, and it allows Palmer is showcase the likable energy that has made her a joy to watch over the years.

Good Fortune might not present Ansari at his comedic best from a writing standpoint, but it helps that he’s surrounded by solid comedic talent to bring it all together. Perhaps the intention wasn’t to say something glaringly new about the situations the characters find themselves in. Perhaps Good Fortune’s biggest feat, as a movie guardian angel, so to speak, is to make the audience smile a bit more as they exit the theater. Box office prospects remain to be determined, but it wouldn’t be surprising if Good Fortune found life down the road as a cult classic about living your life to the fullest and learning a bit more from our fellow man. In times like this, maybe that’s something we really need.

Good Fortune hits theaters nationwide this Friday.