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Aziz Ansari's directorial debut, this whimsical film by actor Aziz Ansari, has been facing challenges at the box office. Several reasons could explain its reception: Its uninspired title doesn't convey its film's unique appeal. Its script can be moralizing and heavy-handed with the messages. Its performances seem flat and staged, as if the cast are reading lines directly from the page. Moreover, it arrives during an era marked by financial uncertainty and inequality, which could render audiences less receptive to a story that implies wealthy people have every advantages while the poor possess heart.

However, this is where the movie excels: The film is unique, bold, creative, frequently humorous, and undoubtedly relevant. And, it offers a great Keanu Reeves character-driven experience.

Keanu Reeves in the role of Angel: A Familiar Performance

Personally, I've not considered Keanu Reeves to be a strong actor. The actor's flat speaking style and persistent look of slight concern has consistently felt limited, regardless of his broad variety of characters he has played during the past 40 of his career. Smart directors have placed Reeves in roles where his stoic nature fits perfectly, including My Own Private Idaho to the sci-fi classic to the action series. But nearly all of those characters called for Reeves to appear tough, distant, or removed.

Throughout the film, the actor plays Gabriel, a minor protecting celestial being assigned with watching over people who use their phones when driving. His whole duty is sitting in his cars and gently touching the drivers' shoulders as they are close to have an accident, warning the person so the driver brake before impact. However, when standing overlooking his domain, gazing on humanity similar to a version of the angel from the director's classic movie Wings of Desire, the character gets aspirational. He wants to become a great guardian and a savior of wayward souls.

The Unexpected Turn: Reeves Playing a Human

So, he reveals himself to down-and-out handyman Arj (portrayed by the director), who is residing out of a vehicle and cursing his life. Gabriel proceeds to swaps Arj into the existence of extremely rich businessman a character (played by the comedian). This point behind the exercise is for the character would understand Jeff's life comes with significant drawbacks, and gratefully return to his own circumstances, much like a character in It's a Wonderful Life.

Issue is, the character immediately realizes how the mogul's problems (tedious appointments, expensive pool-heater invoice) prove minor and readily solved using wealth. Arj also realizes that becoming affluent opens up endless chances for self-indulgent enjoyment. The character has no interest in returning to his previous life, and Gabriel is unable to force him to go back. Then, more bad news arrives: Because of exceeding his mandate and disrupting the balance of the world, Gabriel is fired from his angel job, and transformed to a mortal.

A Revelation: The Actor Smiles

Personally, I remained not persuaded by the actor playing an angel with grand aspirations and a burning desire to effect change. He delivers a familiar somewhat constipated performance he has been providing for at least the last three ten-year periods. Watching Reeves as an angel that has just turned human initially, however, proved to be a blast, due to something which truly surprised me at first: It's an element different for the actor. Or perhaps to be precise, an aspect old.

Early during the character's confusing experience as a mortal, clinging to Jeff (who Gabriel had swapped into Arj's hand-to-mouth life and underemployed status), the character begins tentatively experimenting with human experiences like chewing and swallowing meals. And Reeves smiles. Authentically, cautiously, happily smiles. (It's far more convincing than his grin shown in the poster, that looks artificially added.)

The Reason This Smile Is Significant

It truly took me aback to recognize just how surprising and welcome the expression felt. At what point did we last audiences observed Keanu Reeves grin in a film in which he wasn't showing malice, sarcasm, or resentment? He probably tries a smile at some point in the recent ill-conceived the sequel, however I am not revisiting the disappointment to find out. The actor has remained typecast with serious, murderous, broody, or just solemn characters for so long that just seeing him smile seemed like observing an entirely new actor.

While the story goes on, Gabriel finds himself needing to get a dishwashing job, a role that fails to provide sufficient to live on, and Gabriel begins chain-smoking out of disappointment. Just the image of the actor in a cheap plastic food-service hat, his late-career trademark locks tied in an unglamorous bun, slouching against a wall and puffing on a cigarette, proves worth watching. His dishwasher attire totally changes his appearance and posture: Unexpectedly, the lean, well-dressed action star of his famous movies is gawky, unglamorous, and much increasingly relatable.

A Joy of Watching Keanu Loosen Up

The film isn't consistently enjoyable to view, especially when the director (that also wrote the screenplay) must find believable reasons for {Ar