For anyone who has read Kevin Hart’s book , I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons one cannot help but admire his talent as a stand-up comedian but more impressive is how he survived his childhood, his criminal drug addict father and starting out as a shoe salesman. What followed was many years of hardship and dues paying, to eventually becoming the highest paid stand-up comedian in the world. Success in standup comedy could just be the most difficult road in show business.

As far as acting, all of Hart’s early films were comedies with the exception of 2017’s “The Upside”, with Brian Cranston. His latest movie “Fatherhood” – available on Netflix is Hart’s most serious role and there are scenes within this film that demonstrate conclusively that Kevin Hart is a very good actor.

Fatherhood is a very serious movie about tragic circumstances that could happen to anyone including the remainder of the story about the lead character Matt, played by Hart, adapting to a new life raising his daughter as a single father. Matt constantly has to make difficult decisions that are all about the welfare his child and trying to hang onto a job and making a living. The best part of this story is that sometimes responsibility and a person’s professional career can conflict to the point where there is no perfect solution, no best answer. The supporting cast is also very impressive, including Alfre Woodard, Paul Reiser and Lil Rel Howery.

The Rotten Tomatoes ratings for this movie of only 69% are too low, my rating is more in the 80% range and I recommend Fatherhood, mainly for the surprisingly good acting of Kevin Hart and the relatable but tragic story.