Joey Magidson
It’s hard to depict stand up comedy on the big screen. For every Funny People, there’s a Punchline or The Comedian. That doesn’t mean that the films themselves don’t work (though it sometimes does), but the stand up material itself winds up feeling very weak. It’s rare for the jokes to really land, especially since they’re not being delivered by comedians. One of the things that Is This Thing On? features is a mixed bag of jokes, which is better than the average. As a divorce dramedy, it manages to have a lighter touch than expected, while still being a bit more than disposable entertainment. As the Closing Night selection of the 63rd New York Film Festival, it’s a bit slight, but in terms of being an enjoyable movie, more of it works than doesn’t.
Is This Thing On? has a really overqualified filmmaker at the helm in Bradley Cooper, though one can argue that it elevates the material as opposed to brings him down. Cooper’s contributions to the screenplay and his direction lend a bit more of nuanced edge to what otherwise could have wound up as just a solid romantic comedy. It would have been fine if so, and the Cooper additions aren’t always successful, but they do make for an overall more interesting flick.
Alex (Will Arnett) and Tess (Laura Dern) are a married couple who have recently separated. They have two kids, two dogs, a house, and now an apartment for Alex in the city. He works in finance and she’s a retired volleyball player, so outwardly they appeared like a great family. While at a party hosted by their friends Christine (Andra Day) and Balls (Cooper), they still pretend to be together. They grew apart, however, and it’s affecting them both in very different ways. For Tess, she’s interested in potentially dating again, while also looking to get into coaching. For Alex, he inadvertently winds up at an open mic night, where he learns that stand up comedy can be a form of divorce therapy.
Returning to the stage a few times, Alex has a knack for observational comedy, discussing divorce in a raw way that gets laughs, but also lets him process his crisis. When he’s given a spot at an actual comedy show, Alex has his kids, and Tess is meeting a potential date/volleyball contact (Peyton Manning), so he has to bring them over to his parents Marilyn (Christine Ebersole) and Jan (Ciarán Hinds). It all sets him up to have a breakthrough moment, which should be great, except that his confessional comedy is seen by Tess, who’s at the club, unaware of Alex’s burgeoning stand up life. From there, they both have an unexpected reaction to the discovery, which fuels the second half of the story.
Will Arnett and Laura Dern have a shorthand chemistry that fits as a longtime married couple. Arnett obviously has comedy chops, so while he’s not a trained stand up, he does make those sequences more effective than they otherwise would be. Dern gets to have agency and her character is just as right as Arnett’s, which not every film would do. Together, they’re a very interesting, if somewhat unconventional, screen pairing. Bradley Cooper gets to very silly in a supporting role that doesn’t add much to things, but does generate laughs. Andra Day is mostly wasted, however, as is Ciarán Hinds, though they each have a scene where they can showcase their goods. Christine Ebersole is funny in a role that’s more befitting a broader film, though she’s an amusing presence. Supporting players here include Sean Hayes, Scott Icenogle, Blake Kane, and Calvin Knegton, though Arnett and Dern are the highlights.
Co-writer/director Bradley Cooper goes lighter and decidedly smaller with his third directorial effort. A Star is Born and Maestro, this is not. The script is written by Arnett, Mark Chappell, and Cooper, with Arnett and Chappell sharing a Story By credit with John Bishop. There’s a narrow focus that works better towards the end, as early on it has a meandering feel. Some of Cooper’s choices, like having cinematographer Matthew Libatique have a tight framing of the characters, give the film a distinct look. Other choices, like never really addressing the characters and their day jobs, just feels like a missed opportunity for more layering. At slightly over two hours, it’s a bloated flick, given where we end up, but it does allow the plot to breath, which is overall beneficial.
Is This Thing On? isn’t an awards player and is a bit of a trifle, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t mostly entertained. By the end, Cooper and company have crafted a winning dramedy that has elements of what makes any good rom com work. Wrapping up NYFF on a pleasant if unspectacular note, it’s destined to be a very easy watch for folks, once it comes out later on this year.
SCORE: ★★★
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