Johnny Showtime: GOOD FORTUNE

 by JB

Looking for a “feel good about humanity film” for the holidays? I’ve got you covered.

I will admit that I was expecting arch Hollywood irony and cynicism after sitting through the trailer for Good Fortune a couple of times at my local cineplex. An updated Prince and the Pauper, the directorial debut of Aziz Ansari promised easy laughs at the expense of rich, clueless Seth Rogan and downtrodden, put-upon Aziz.

Keanu Reeves plays an angel.

This movie is so much better than it has any right to be. First, it is sweet. In my advanced age, where I look around on a fairly regular basis and find kindness and sweetness in short supply, this is reason alone to champion a new film. Second, it is full of ideas, ideas about the way we live our lives and what some of those lives have become. Third, it is extremely optimistic, but in a less showy, less Hollywood, more human way than you might expect. Third, it is brave enough to be politically progressive in an era (era) where that could get the film criticized in some circles. The conclusion of this film is very specific about the way in which things need to change if we want all Americans to have a happy ending.

THE PLOT IN BRIEF: Arj (Aziz Ansari) is barely eking out a living in the gig economy of Los Angeles, California. He works for a food deliver service, an online handyman service, and a local hardware store. He cannot afford rent and lives in his car. One day, he meets venture capitalist Jeff (Seth Rogan) who hires him to be his personal assistant. A minor mix-up involving Arj’s company credit card gets him fired.

Meanwhile, minor-league guardian angel Gabriel (Keanu Reeves) in charge of keeping people from texting while driving, notices Arj’s predicament and wants to help. What if Arj and Jeff switched places for a time? Gabriel could make that happen. Wouldn’t both of them learn to appreciate the life they had? I love how Good Fortune gets the tiny details right. This is probably what it is like to work for Grub Hub. This is probably what it is like to live paycheck to paycheck. This is probably how hopeless it feels when you play by the rules and still fail to advance. Apparently, writer/director Aziz Ansari spent time with food delivery workers and took some shifts at a local hardware store while writing the script for Good Fortune.

If Good Fortune proves anything, it’s that Keanu Reeves has amazing comic timing. This should come as no surprise as he essentially started his career with Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, a comic turn for the ages, but too many action films and Bram Stoker’s Dracula conspired to hide this truth. Each of his line readings in Good Fortune is a comic gem. When Seth Rogan’s Jeff upbraids him for taking up smoking, Reeves’ response, “Leave me alone, Jeff. I like it. It’s all I have.” is one of the highlights of the film. Watch the trailer.

The film plays fair with its body switching plot and the twist that (MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT) once he’s made rich, Aziz’s Arj has no desire to go back to his old life, and why would he? For a film that features magic realism, champions the virtues of tacos, cigarettes, and chicken nuggies, and earns its happy ending, the film never insults our intelligence or becomes smarmy. Honestly.

Besides its sprightly Carter Burwell score, Good Fortune also features some terrific needle drops. “Do You Wanna Funk” by Patrick Cowley and Sylvester (also featured in, of all things, John Landis’ Trading Places), “Push It” by Salt N Pepa, and “Groove is in the Heart” by Deeelite are great choices that all bolster the film’s lighthearted tone and underlying comedy. These are songs I listened to when I was a much younger man.

George Carlin once asked his audience if, when making a sandwich, they ever reached down below the first few slices in the loaf to “get at the good bread?” This is hilarious because almost every human being on earth has done that. It’s a shout-out to the commonality of our humanity that sells the joke. It’s funny because it’s true. Good Fortune is smart enough to know that for its comfortable conclusion to be earned, it must make a statement about humanity that its audience will accept. Salsa dancing is a lot of fun. Just sitting around and talking to people we love is terrific. And chocolate milkshakes are fucking awesome. Ask any angel.