Maybe it’s just me, but I feel if Will Arnett wasn’t available for this flick, Jason Sudeikis probably could have filled in well enough.
Anyway, Arnett lends his talent in this flick to play Alex Novak, a man whose marriage appears to be coming to a complete end. Alex agreed to separate from his wife Tess (Laura Dern), and a divorce appears to be on the horizon.
With his relationship likely over, and subsequent strain on being a dad to his two boys, Alex finds himself struggling to process the situation. He finds a way to channel his thoughts, though, in going to an open mic night and giving stand-up comedy a try. Fortunately for him, it ends up working fairly well.
After a pair of larger-scale dramas, the last being the grand biopic “Maestro” from 2023, Bradley Cooper returns to the director’s chair with a simpler flick. It’s a more grounded story unfolding on screen in comparison, but that doesn’t mean it’s lacking in emotional engagement or cinematic appeal.
“Is This Thing On,” as a character study about a person navigating a midlife crisis by way of a new creative outlet, largely works. Hobbies, practices and trades can often be therapeutic endeavors that offer relief, and in this movie, it just happens to be stand-up comedy.
Not only is it an interesting and funny way for a character to process something, it also offers some insight into a world usually hidden. We get to see the inner workings. How comedians interact, create and explore new ways of telling their stories with laughter in mind.
Cooper manages to do this with a fish out of water method, as Alex is a newcomer to the stage. It allows the viewer to explore this world with the character, and understand how he’s processing life changes. It’s these moments in the comedy club where the film is at its strongest.
The rest of the movie, which centers on Alex’s family life and dissolving marriage, is a bit less consistent. There are several good scenes, some dripping with very raw emotion that feel all too real, especially a key argument between Alex and Tess.
At the same time, other moments are weaker, feeling either too contrived or Hollywoodized. That’s especially true with the film’s ending that turns up the schmaltz, to its detriment. The good news is the cast is really solid.
Arnett is exceptional on screen, convincing in portraying the difficult emotions he’s shifting through as relationships and living situations alter. Dern, an Oscar and Emmy winner, is unsurprisingly good on screen, too. As usual, she can both power the dramatic moments while capturing the grounded slice of life sequences.
The movie also benefits from some real stand-up comedians who appear in the movie as versions of themselves and give insight to what that world is really like. The actual weakest link in the movie character-wise is the director. Cooper playing douchey characters like the one here really never works. It was no good in 2012’s “Hit and Run,” and it’s a black mark in his latest.
Cooper’s efforts on the visual end are better. He partnered with cinematographer Matthew Libatique on this project. They nicely bring to screen both aspects of Alex’s existence: the nightlife and suburbia. It’s done with a lot of hand-held camera work, which is a be a bit shaky sometimes, but is mostly successful in getting across the uneven ground of the protagonist’s position.
There are times when “Is This Thing On” can stand with the best dramatic comedies out there but that’s not true for the entire feature. Its strengths in its two leads, some powerful scenes and an interesting look at stand-up comedy are all positives. However, there are also times it loses its edge or becomes too cliched, ultimately holding it back. But overall, those aforementioned positives outweigh the negatives. 3.8 out of 5.
Matthew Liedke on Film 