Say 'Goodrich' a few times, then skip it
HANDOUT
We’re really doing this again? A movie about a dad who has to stop being frazzled and detached and learn what it actually takes to connect with and raise his kids? And especially starring “Mr. Mom”?
Yep, “Goodrich” delivers exactly what you think it will, and nothing we haven’t seen before.
Andy Goodrich (Michael Keaton) has spent years working nonstop on his titular art gallery, but when his wife (Laura Benanti) enters rehab for a pill addiction that’s very much news to him, Andy has a non-optional chance to take care of his nine-year-old twins (Vivien Lyra Blair, Jacob Kopera) — and maybe, eventually, find time for the adult daughter Grace (Mila Kunis) from his first marriage who has justifiably complicated feelings about seeing her long-absentee father finally digging in for someone else. Whew, that was a long sentence for a premise that’s actually super-basic, with writer-director Hallie Meyers-Shyer even including lines like “Daddy, what’s rehab?” so we really know not to expect too much. Andy’s forgetful about allergies and doesn’t understand the school lunch situation and is clueless enough to try to entice Grace, who is pregnant and much more responsible than her father, to come out by mentioning sushi. (When her water breaks and she says “It’s happening,” he says, “What’s happening?” Oy.) That Andy’s at times pretty likable, especially in his developing friendship with Terry (“Shrinking” standout Michael Urie), is a testament to Keaton’s knack for turning sheepish into sweet.
But only so much. “If life isn’t kicking your ass, it’s not doing it’s job,” Andy says in one of several moments intended to milk emotion but shouldn’t even get quoted in someone’s yearbook. The title (and Grace of course being named Grace) also indicates the goal here, of recognizing what’s important and blah blah blah, lessons that always matter and don’t particularly need to be trotted out yet again, this way.
Syrupy can have its comforting appeal, but “Goodrich” is less like what you put on pancakes and more like what you drain out of a fruit cup.
C
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