Bradley Cooper’s Is This Thing On? is a tender, wryly observed dramedy about the strange grace of second chances and the theraputic nature of laughter. Swapping the sweeping tragedy of A Star Is Born for something quieter and more intimate, Cooper’s third film as director finds beauty in the small messes of middle age — where heartbreak and humour sit side by side. Adapted from a true story, the film draws inspiration from Liverpool-born comedian John Bishop’s real-life journey of reconciling with his wife.
The story centres on Alex (a wonderfully understated turn by comedy actor Will Arnett), a recently separated dad still nursing the emotional bruises of divorce. One night, in an attempt to dodge a comedy club’s cover charge, Alex stumbles into an open mic night — and, inadvertently, into a new calling. What begins as an awkward escape slowly becomes a kind of self-therapy, as Alex channels his confusion and regret into painfully funny confessions on stage.
Meanwhile, his ex-wife Tess (Laura Dern, brilliant as ever) is charting her own uncertain path. A former Olympic volleyball player now redefining herself as a single mother, Tess embodies both strength and fragility — she a woman learning how to stand tall again, even as the ground shifts beneath her. Their lives remain intertwined through their children and shared past, and as they both begin to rebuild, they find unexpected echoes of affection and understanding.
Cooper, co-writing with Arnett and Mark Chappell, handles this emotional terrain with a light but assured touch. There’s no melodrama here — just moments of truth, tenderness and awkward hilarity.
The film’s heart beats in the chemistry between Arnett and Dern, who give career-best performances here. Arnett, shedding his usual comedic armour, finds something raw and deeply human in Alex — a man who’s funny because he’s hurting. Dern, as ever, radiates intelligence and empathy, portraying Tess with the kind of layered nuance that turns even quiet moments into revelations. Together, they create a portrait of two people learning that married life is more complex that they first thought.
Cooper himself turns up in a delightfully offbeat cameo as a self-involved actor (equal parts absurd and tragic), while Andra Day lends warmth and grounding as his weary artist wife. The inclusion of real comedians like Sam Jay, Dave Attell, and Amy Sedaris gives the film’s comedy-club world an authentic lived-in feel.
Gentle, funny, and full of heart, Is This Thing On? may not reinvent the wheel, but it doesn’t try to. Instead, it offers a beautifully observed story about love, loss, and the slow, uneven process of finding yourself again. Cooper, as usual, directs with quiet confidence, letting the emotions unfold naturally and trusting his actors to do the heavy lifting.
This is a charmer of a comedy with soul — and proof that sometimes the best punchlines come from the messiest parts of life.
