Michael Keaton has been having a bit of a resurgence over the last decade or so. He was pretty big in the 80s with films like Beetlejuice, Mr. Mom. Batman, and Johnny Dangerously were all big hits. He didn’t have much going on after that for a while. He’s been doing a lot of different kinds of roles lately including reboots, sequels, and awards-type roles. His latest role in Goodrich is like a return to his past. Specifically Mr. Mom with a modern twist.

Andy Goodrich (Michael Keaton) is the owner of a boutique art gallery in Los Angeles. He has three children, a 35-year-old daughter Grace (Mila Kunis) who’s pregnant, and two 9-year-old twins Billy and Moses. His wife Naomi decided to leave him and check into rehab and his business is struggling to make money. It’s not his best year.  Everywhere he turns things are looking bad for him. He’s in a bit of a crisis. There is a possibility things could start looking up for him though. He wants to be there for his family, but he’s struggling in his own life. 

This is a slice-of-life kind of movie, but the only one that could be a California/LA story. This story couldn’t take place somewhere else. There are specific things like stress release classes, ladies’ night music shows, gay fathers of a single child, and odd food and restaurants.  A lot of this story film won’t be relatable to people, but some of it will be. It’s just relatable in a different kind of way. This is a modern kind of family film I haven’t seen much of lately. 

There are a lot of films about parenting or some form of it and this one is one of the strangest I’ve seen in my lifetime. Having children so far apart in age is something you don’t see all the time. With a successful man like this man, it makes sense he had a couple of different relationships and bore children. It’s a modern take on fatherhood. This story had to be a bit personal for writer/director Hallie Meyers-Shyer. At least it seemed that way to me. It had that kind of vibe right from the beginning. 

Besides Keaton, there is a nice supporting cast in this film. The kids’ performances were a bit of a surprise. The other supporting cast played by Carmen Ejogo, Kevin Pollak, Danny Deferrari, and especially Mila Kinis are good in the movie. They all represent the lives of the main character, played by Michael Keaton’s character, supporting family and friends nicely. A good lead character needs a good supporting cast and this one has it. 

I’ve had my issues with my father over the years. He wasn’t great to me or my siblings when we were kids. Now he wants to be in my life and he calls me a lot. It’s hard for me to grasp because of how he was when I was younger. There is a similar plot in this film regarding the father-daughter relationship.  The main character wasn’t there for his daughter when she was young and now he wants to be present in her life. It’s what most people would say is a little too late for that. That’s the relatable part of this movie for me.

Goodrich is a modern-day Mr. Mom for me with a twist. The setting of Los Angeles California is a way to modernize the story.  The supporting cast is very good with Kinis as the standout. She played a pregnant woman dealing with his father’s issues quite nicely. Keaton though takes a somewhat throwaway role and infuses some heart and soul into it. Fatherhood and the family dynamic are different today than they were when I was growing up. Writer/director Meyers-Shyer showed there are different ways to parent in this modern era.  This film is a good indicator of that as far as I am concerned.

3 ½ stars

Dan Skip Allen