Rob Reviews "Good Fortune"

The best way that I can describe Good Fortune is to take the body-swap stories that were popular in the ‘80s and put a “The Prince and the Pauper” spin on it.  Aziz Ansari co-stars, writes, and produces here, which may or may not be a bad thing.  The upside is that since he is writing, he knows what it takes for him to get the right performance from himself.  However, in my research I found out that part of his process is to meet with his actors in order for his script to play to their strengths, and that works out as well.

Keaun Reeves plays the angel Gabriel (which may or may not be a prequel THAT Gabriel), who is trying to move up the ranks of angel-dom (yep, I made up a word) from simply being the angel that saves people from texting and driving to something he feels more meaningful.  When he comes across Arj (Ansari), who can’t find work as a documentary editor and takes up a life in “gig economy,” Gabriel feels the need to take him on as a lost soul that will prove to his boss, Martha (Sandra Oh), that he can handle the larger workload.  In doing so, he gives the life of tech bro Jeff (Seth Rogen) and gives Jeff his life; the problem there is that instead of realizing that his old life has more meaning, Arj doesn’t want to switch back.  Even as Gabriel gives Jeff his memories back in order to try and force Arj’s hand (he has to agree), Arj will not budge.  So now, Gabriel must find a way to fix all of this or lose HIS job forever.

I said this in the screening I went to, and I will say it here: Keanu Reeves makes EVERYTHING better.  He treats Gabriel with the innocence and wide-eyed wonder that got him to the dance with Theodore “Ted” Logan back in 1989 to hilarious results.  At one point, he has to be made human in order to try and fix everything, and that aspect of this story alone makes it worth the price of admission.  I also appreciated the choice made by Ansari to not take away Jeff’s memories completely in order to add to the chaos and lessons that are learned by both of them.  The three of them work this delicate dance of storytelling, comedy, and heart with the grace of the best of performers.  Keke Palmer is also great here as Elena, the girl that is the target of Arj’s affections but does not realize he needs more than money for those affections to be returned.  She is really starting to come into her own as an actor, and I am here for it.

Good Fortune is a LOT of fun.  In a season where there will be a ton of more intense films that want those all-important trophies, this is one that could sneak in and get some love, especially from the screenwriting aspect.  I don’t necessarily feel it is a “theater requirement” but to give it some duckets for box office numbers wouldn’t hurt.