Is This Thing On? (15)

Alex Novak and wife Tess are in the early stages of separation, sensitively navigating the end of their marriage while caring for the mental wellbeing of their young sons, Felix and Jude. Unable to afford the cover charge at his local drinking den, Alex impetuously puts his name down to perform at the Comedy Cellar's open mic night. He talks about his failed marriage and the audience responds warmly. As he builds in confidence and performs more regularly, Alex gravitates back towards Tess.

LondonNet Film Review

Is This Thing On? (15) Film Review from LondonNet

The personal life of Liverpudlian comedian John Bishop provides loose inspiration for a thorny relationship comedy drama co-written by director Bradley Cooper, lead actor Will Arnett and Mark Chappell, which professes the most honest and relatable humour is mined from the deepest heartache…

Alex Novak (Arnett) and wife Tess (Laura Dern) are in the early stages of separation, sensitively navigating the end of their marriage while caring for the mental wellbeing of their young sons, Felix (Blake Kane) and Jude (Calvin Knegten). “Nobody cheated,” Alex explains to his father Jan (Ciaran Hinds) during a heart-to-heart in the backyard as they repair an old miniature house. “It’s complicated….” he adds, stating the obvious to his old man, who has seen and heard it all before. His mother Marilyn (Christine Ebersole) provides emotional support as Alex and Tess work out the logistics of living separately and sharing custody of the boys.

The couple’s coterie of close friends, including Alex’s best friend Balls (Bradley Cooper) as his wife Christine (Andra Day) and Stephen (Sean Hayes) and his husband Geoffrey (Scott Icenogle) try to maintain some semblance of normality rather than add to the emotional upheaval. Unable to afford the cover charge at his local drinking den, Alex impetuously puts his name down to perform at the Comedy Cellar’s open mic night emceed by Kemp (Amy Sedaris). Off the cuff, he talks about his failed marriage and the audience responds warmly. As he builds in confidence and performs more regularly, Alex gravitates back towards Tess, who has a new beau (Peyton Manning).

Is This Thing On? is a gently humorous study of a marriage falling apart and slowly piecing itself back together, powered by a self-deprecating performance from Arnett as a father and husband, who begins to self-reflect and acknowledge his failings when he’s stood in the spotlight. He catalyses winning screen chemistry with Dern – we believe wholeheartedly in Alex and Tess as a couple – but some of the most tender and touching scenes unfold between Arnett and young co-stars Kane and Knegten.

When Felix and Jude stumble upon their father’s ‘joke book’, full of anecdotes and deeply personal thoughts about their fractured family, Alex explains his comedy material blends real people and situations with imagined scenarios. “I’m making up stories, because a lot of stuff is changing,” he tells the tykes. Cooper collaborates with cinematographer Matthew Libatique to invest protracted comedy club sequences with nervous, kinetic energy, mirroring Alex’s adrenaline rush as he seeks laughter and acceptance from his audience. The film repeatedly wins approval by wearing its heart on a sleeve.

– Jo Planter