Is This Thing On Review: Bradley Cooper and Will Arnett Turn Midlife Crisis Into Comedy Gold

⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Is This Thing On

Directed by Bradley Cooper

Written by Bradley Cooper, Mark Chappell, and Will Arnett

Release Date Decemer 19th, 2025

Is This Thing On Review: Comedy, Marriage, and Midlife Crises

Anyone who has ever been forced to listen to that uncle or sibling who really believes they’re hilarious knows that comedy is not easy. While successful stand-ups make it look effortless, stand-up is an artform. It’s more than just having a funny joke. You need timing, cadence, and the instinct to know when the laugh is coming — and how to build that beat into your set.

Yes, some comics seem to have the goods from day one, but by no means is that success accidental. The stage persona has to be attuned to who they really are, and timing only comes with experience. The stage is a minefield. Bombing is lonely, painful, and humbling, and no amount of ingenious jokes about your parents or your childhood will spare you from the terror of silence.

The Story: A Free Drink, A Microphone, and a Marriage in Ruins

Bradley Cooper’s latest film, Is This Thing On, fudges a little on how easy it is for a newcomer to hop onstage. But the premise is irresistible.

Will Arnett plays Alex, a middle-aged man in the midst of an acrimonious separation from his wife, Laura Dern. With nothing left to lose, Alex wanders into a comedy club open mic night and is told that if he wants a free drink, he has to get on stage. He does, mostly out of despair.

To his surprise, he gets a few decent laughs at the expense of his dying marriage. It’s not a triumph, but it plants a seed. There’s something cathartic about it. He starts going back, week after week, making friends with the regular comics, soaking in their advice, and learning that stand-up isn’t about winging it — it’s about writing, refining, and risking ego for truth.

A Life in Pieces, A Set in Progress

Meanwhile, Alex is trying to be a father in a tiny apartment on weekends. Tess (Dern), a former Olympic volleyball star, is offered new coaching opportunities — a possible return to the Olympic world.

Neither is ready to completely cut the cord. They attend a party together, keeping up appearances. Their friends, Christine (Audra Day) and Arnie (Bradley Cooper) know something is wrong, but not how bad. Alex confides in Arnie about stand-up. Christine, assuming Alex is the problem, pushes Tess toward her new opportunities.

As Alex gains confidence on stage, something unexpected happens — healing. Comedy helps him process the divorce. Of course, it’s only a matter of time before Tess catches him performing.

How she reacts isn’t predictable. Dern plays the moment beautifully, and Cooper has the sense to let the scene breathe. It’s funny, sad, awkward, and real.

Arnett Is Excellent — Raw, Funny, and On the Brink

Is This Thing On isn’t on the same artistic level as A Star is Born or even the fascinating mess of Maestro, but it has enough charm to more than get by. It absolutely feels like a favor to Cooper’s friend Arnett — who co-wrote the script with Cooper and Mark Chappell — and that’s okay. Arnett isn’t a proven box-office commodity, but he’s terrific here.

His stand-up has the raw energy of a man teetering on emotional collapse, turning jokes about his failing marriage into a tightrope walk between breakdown and triumph.

That tension is exciting. That’s the magic of open mic nights: you might witness the next great comedian, or you might watch someone fall flat on their face under a hot spotlight, sweating and praying that unconsciousness or a punchline might save them.

Cooper captures that energy. Alex is probably too good for a first-timer, but the movie earns it. He works. He learns. He’s mentored. His routines get better. And the story never forgets the marriage at its center.

Bradley Cooper, Confident Behind the Camera

Bradley Cooper has grown comfortable behind the camera. There is nothing flashy here — no self-indulgent flourishes. Instead, there’s confidence. The film ambles with the loose energy of a practiced comic: relaxed, practiced, but sharp when it matters.

Is This Thing On is about getting better — as a performer, as a parent, as a spouse. It’s about weathering humiliation and finding connection again, on stage and at home. It’s not a masterpiece, but it’s immensely likable.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed this movie. Arnett is terrific. Dern is even better. Cooper directs with smart restraint, guiding a story that balances heart and humor without ever tipping into sentimentality.

Is This Thing On is a low-key winner: funny, heartfelt, and deceptively wise about what it takes to find your voice after life knocks you down.

Tags

• Is This Thing On review

• Bradley Cooper

• Will Arnett

• Laura Dern

• stand up comedy movie

• 2025 movies

• movie reviews

• comedy drama movies

• divorce and comedy

• film reviews

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