Is This Thing On?

Directed by Bradley Cooper, Is This Thing On? follows Will Arnett’s Alex Novak as he attempts to launch a career as a standup comic in the wake of his split from Laura Dern’s Tess. Filmmaker Cooper, armed with a script written alongside Arnett and Mark Chappell, delivers a perpetually watchable endeavor that improves immeasurably as it progresses, as the picture boasts a decidedly shaggy (and far-from-enthralling) opening stretch that eventually gives way to a compelling, engrossing midsection and second half – with the agreeable vibe heightened by Matthew Libatique’s solid visuals and a series of above-average performances. Arnett does, in terms of the latter, offer up perpetually stirring (and surprisingly affecting) work that proves effective at anchoring the proceedings through its periodic lulls, and it’s clear, too, that Cooper has elicited first-class efforts from an eclectic periphery cast that includes Andra Day, Christine Ebersole, and Ciarán Hinds. By the time the unexpectedly moving closing stretch rolls around, Is This Thing On? has confirmed its place as a top-notch drama that contains, at its core, a revelatory turn by its star.

***1/2 out of ****