Last updated on 2025-11-02
It’s a film where angels are clueless and humans are hopeless.
Aziz Ansari, Seth Rogen, and Keanu Reeves playing an awkward angel?
Well, this should be a lot of lighthearted fun, right?
Plot Summary of Good Fortune (Spoiler-Free)
Good Fortune follows Arj, played by Aziz Ansari, a gig worker whose life is a parade of odd jobs and daily indignities.
Some of his bizarre gigs include things like standing in line for bagels, sorting through someone else’s garage, or doing laundry, all the while keeping a little spark of hope that things might get better.
When Arj lands a temporary gig for Jeff, a rich tech investor played by Seth Rogen, he manages to talk Jeff into hiring him full-time, and for a brief moment, life looks a little less miserable, as Arj moves from living in his car to a grimy motel room.
But his luck turns on a dime, as he gets fired for charging a dinner on Jeff’s corporate card, despite promising to pay it back, and then his car gets towed.
Meanwhile, Keanu Reeves’ Gabriel is introduced as a well-meaning but inexperienced angel tasked with nudging humans to avoid texting while driving, and Gabriel notices Arj’s desperate messages about having nothing to live for and decides to intervene, ignoring his boss Martha (Sandra Oh).
The movie mixes comedy, social commentary, and a bit of fantasy, throwing in reflections on the gig economy, income inequality, and the struggles of trying to survive on multiple low paying jobs.
At least, it tries to.
Good Fortune Review: Is It Worth Watching?
Good Fortune is confusing, ambitious, sometimes funny, often frustrating, and occasionally brilliant, all at the same time.
On one hand, the cast is amazing here, as Aziz Ansari brings a mix of charm and exhausted humanity to Arj that makes you root for him even when he’s being dumb., while Seth Rogen is just Seth Rogen – part oblivious, part obnoxious, but somehow still endearing.
And then we have Keanu Reeves as Gabriel, who is something else entirely, as he’s this angelic observer of humanity, completely innocent, baffled by mundane things like sweat or hamburgers, and entirely incapable of anticipating how human life works.
The problem is, the movie can’t quite decide if it wants to be a light comedy, a social critique, or a weird morality play with angels as stand ins for life lessons, as one moment, you’re laughing at Arj standing in a line for bagels for hours, and the next, you’re watching a scene about people living paycheck to paycheck with a seriousness that makes your stomach twist.
The film highlights these absurdities of the gig economy, and Ansari does really nails the hopelessness of modern survival, but he mixes it with slapstick and broad comedy in ways that sometimes undercut the message.
There are moments where you think, “Yes! Finally, someone is showing the reality of this life,” but then the angel shows up, or someone eats a hamburger for the first time, and it all shifts into comedy again.
And I can’t decide if the angel subplot is genius or a distraction, as on paper, it should add a whimsical touch, a bit of fantasy to lighten the heavy themes, but in practice, it sometimes steals the spotlight from the human characters.
Watching Gabriel marvel at mundane human experiences is funny, don’t get me wrong, but it’s exhausting after a while, and it doesn’t help that Arj and Jeff, once swapped into each other’s lives, become secondary to Gabriel’s exploration of humanity, so by the midpoint, I found myself caring more about the angel than the humans he’s supposed to be helping.
But despite its tonal confusion, the movie does have heart, and it’s clear that Ansari cares about the subjects he’s tackling, and there are moments that do hit hard and communicate the message it is trying to tell rather well.
One thing that does works really well though is the chemistry between the actors.
Ansari and Keke Palmer, who plays Arj’s love interest Elena, have some real warmth, while Rogen’s Jeff is cartoonish but believable in his cluelessness, and Reeves is well, Reeves, and somehow that’s enough.
Unfortunately though, we do get more than a few scenes that drag on in the wrong places during the film, and it can sometimes feel like it’s all meandering without much purpose, but there are some genuinely funny moments thrown in too.
Gabriel’s interactions with the human world are priceless – his confusion about sweat, food, or money is both amusing and a little heartbreaking, while Arj’s gigs are absurd and sad in equal measure, and there are scenes where the humor and commentary actually balance perfectly, if only briefly.
Good Fortune is a film that leaves you feeling a little unsure about what you just watched though – you laugh, you get annoyed, you think, you sigh, and then wonder why you had to feel all of that in a movie that promised a couple of hours of light comedy.
It’s messy, ambitious, occasionally brilliant, but mostly confused.
What I liked (And What I Didn’t like)
Pros
Aziz Ansari’s Performance
He brings some charm, exhaustion, and humanity to it all.
Seth Rogen’s Clueless Humor
He’s perfect as the oblivious rich guy trying to live as a gig worker.
Keanu Reeves
Deadpan, weird, funny, sometimes heartbreaking, but he steals every scene he’s in.
Commentary on Gig Economy
The film does a good job showing the absurdities and struggles of modern gig work.
Heart
The movie genuinely cares about the characters and their struggles, even when it fumbles the execution.
Cons
Confused Tone
It can’t quite decide if it’s a comedy, fantasy, or social critique.
Messy Pacing
Some scenes drag while others rush too much.
Secondary Characters Underused At Times
Arj and Jeff could, and should have been more central in some key scenes.
Repetitive Gags
Gabriel discovering humans for the first time is funny at first but gets old.
Emotional Whiplash
The film swings between sadness, humor, and anger a bit too abruptly.
Who Might Like Good Fortune
- Fans of Aziz Ansari’s humor and personality
- Anyone curious about films exploring gig economy struggles
- Those who like a mix of comedy and social commentary
- People who enjoy absurd, slightly awkward humor
- Fans of Seth Rogen’s slapstick obliviousness
Who Might Dislike Good Fortune
- Anyone expecting a pure comedy
- Viewers who don’t like tonal shifts
- People who get frustrated by messy pacing
- Anyone sensitive to heavy social commentary in light films
- People annoyed by repetitive gags
Final Verdict: Did I Enjoy Watching Good Fortune?
Good Fortune is a weird mix of funny, sad, frustrating, and occasionally brilliant, and the movie’s heart is clear, even if the execution is messy.
But despite its flaws, I’m glad I watched it, as it’s undeniably human in its approach to comedy and social issues, and I ended up thinking, well, that was something, and that’s certainly not the worst thing a movie can do.
Good Fortune Trailer
Simon Leasher
A lover of cinema for over 35 years, I have watched many films from around the world in many different genres, yet I still normally always come back to trashy slasher horror films when in doubt. More
And yes, The Godfather 2 is better than The Godfather.
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