Art has always been a favoured method of processing personal experiences, be it love, fear or general existentialism. Recently, “Hamnet” tells the (somewhat fictional) story of William Shakespeare processing his grief through his writing. “Is This Thing On?” adapts the story of John Bishop who found an outlet through standup comedy following the breakdown of his marriage.
The film is directed by Bradley Cooper and rather than being the big-swing Oscar-bait biopic of “Maestro” or the star-studded toe-tapping remake of “A Star is Born”, his third feature marks a more grounded effort. The result being too safe to be overly disappointing but not remarkable enough to be so memorable.
My biggest disappointment with the film is that it starts out so boring. Alex (Will Arnett) is disillusioned, both in his life but also in his marriage with Tess (Laura Dern). Their relationship has grown stale and they find themselves accepting that that’s just how it is and that it’s best that they split amicably and co-parent their two young boys. There’s a sense that Cooper wants fully emerge his audience in their triteness with awkward silences and excruciatingly long takes but instead it feels showy. It should be possible for a movie to convey boredom without us actually being bored.
Alex moves into an apartment on his own and finds himself on the streets of New York City looking for a place to drink. He signs up to an open mic night to avoid paying the entry fee to a bar and now finds himself on stage in front of a paying audience, relaying the recent breakup of his marriage. It’s a sticky start but eventually he gets one or two laughs and he’s caught the bug. It’s cathartic and makes him feel alive and he vows to return, this time armed with new material.
Now the film (like Alex) gets out of its rut and finds its comedic feet. This is in no small part down to Cooper himself as Alex’s best friend, Balls, (yes that’s how he’s credited) who provides some of the funniest lines in the movie. Alex hones his craft and finds fulfilment through his comedy performances. Friends say he looks better, he sleeps with another woman, he’s engaged in a new community of fellow comedians and he’s honing his craft. The film becomes funny and interesting again and excels in its 2nd act. Unfortunately, it outstays its welcome here and could have benefitted from a more brutal edit to cut down the eventual 2 hour runtime. Now the film switches from light dramedy to cliche sentimentality that tries to be too neat and convenient.
Fans of Bojack Horseman will be no strangers to Arnett’s capability to convincingly flip between humour and vulnerability, albeit now he gets the opportunity to physically embody it. He does a solid job of portraying someone who is figuring their life out, constantly between states of comfort and stability in one moment and then unease and disaster in the next without ever overplaying either part. I only wish his character was given the opportunity to push the needle a little further as he seems to stay pretty comfortably between the lines.
Dern is also notable as the perfect foil to Arnett. She has her own side to the story and while it doesn’t get played out as much as Arnett’s, it feels just as important and she manages to hold her own. Tess may not be the main character but her feelings are just as complicated and valid as Alex’s. She’s to just the main character’s wife but is as crucial in the central relationship as Arnett.
Cooper has said that before he joined production of the film, the story focused more on Alex’s venture into stand-up and his ascent as a comedian. Cooper pivoted to focus more on the relationship between Alex and Tess and he was right to do so. The end result is much more interesting than what could easily have turned into a soppy success story. Instead the film is about finding what gives you fulfilment in life and then pursuing it. By limiting Alex’s success in the film to open mic nights around the city, the film doesn’t promote the pursuit of absolute greatness (which often comes at the expense of our relationships), instead it suggests that one’s own fulfilment and passions have a place alongside our relationships - and actually, not only can they coexist but they can complement one another.
“Is This Thing On” is a more understated effort from Bradley Cooper but it’s a solid one nonetheless. Operating the camera himself, Cooper makes us feel uneasy and vulnerable during Alex’s early standup sets by keeping us so close to to his face as if there’s no escape from the awkwardness and we, like Alex, don’t feel safe. Cooper even used the same lens throughout the entirety of the film, maintaining the sense of intimacy. It’s not a wide-eyed film about one man’s success; it’s about being unhappy in a relationship and working through it.
With his third feature, Cooper has shown he’s a more than capable filmmaker and while his latest film is nothing groundbreaking, it's interesting and charming enough to get by.
★★★
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