Is This Thing On? (2025) Searchlight/Comedy-Drama RT: 121 minutes Rated R (language throughout, sexual references, some drug use) Director: Bradley Cooper Screenplay: Bradley Cooper, Will Arnett and Mark Chappell Music: James Newberry Cinematography: Matthew Libatique Release date: December 19, 2025 (US, limited)/January 9, 2026 (US, wide) Cast: Will Arnett, Laura Dern, Andra Day, Bradley Cooper, Christine Ebersole, Ciaran Hinds, Amy Sedaris, Sean Hayes, Scott Icenogle, Chloe Radcliffe, Jordan Jensen, Peyton Manning, Reggie Conquest, James Tom, Gabe Fazio, Blake Kane, Calvin Knegten.
Rating: *** ½
The truth is the hardest thing to hear. Brutal honesty is hard to take. Too many times, people keep quiet about what’s bugging them. Maybe it’s for the sake of their loved one’s feelings. Maybe they don’t like confrontation. Whatever the reason, things that need to be said go unsaid until they can’t stand it anymore. Anything can happen at that point.
This is an all too common occurrence in many marriages. When a couple’s been married for a long time, they settle into certain rhythms. They accept the way things are in silence. Both parties are unhappy and their partners know it but don’t address it. It can lead to divorce. This is the position the Novaks find themselves in Is This Thing On?, the latest film from Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born). It opens with Alex (Arnett, Arrested Development) and Tess (Dern, Marriage Story) mutually agreeing to separate after 20 years of marriage. It’s not an ideal situation, especially for their two young sons (Kane and Knegten), but they need to figure things out.
Alex, feeling depressed and lost, wanders the streets of New York one night until he comes to a comedy club. In order to avoid paying the $15 cover charge, he signs up for their open mic night even though he’s never attempted stand-up before. He takes the stage and proceeds to tell the audience about his impending divorce. It’s a clumsy debut with long, long pauses. He does get a few laughs though so it’s not a total disaster. Alex comes back again and again, each time a little more confident. Soon he develops a passion for his new thing, writing jokes in a notebook and hanging out with other amateur comics between sets.
So obviously, stand-up is Alex’s way of coping with the possible end of his marriage. Unable to communicate with Tess, he talks to the audience instead. He’s able to open up to them and say things he should be saying to his wife. Well, it’s cheaper than a therapist.
Alex isn’t the only one with issues. Tess has a lot of deep-seeded anger directed at him. Once a promising volleyball player, she gave up her Olympic dreams to be a wife and mother. Now that things have changed, she decides to return to her passion as a coach. This comes with an opportunity to coach the 2028 Olympic team. She also starts dating again, an old friend (NFL quarterback Manning) who’s a coach himself. That relationship fizzles the minute he takes her to the same comedy club where Alex is performing a set. It’s eye-opening for both of them to say the least.
As a director, Cooper makes the kinds of films we used to see in the 70s, a decade I consider one of cinema’s best. Stylistically, I see shades of Altman and Cassavetes in Is This Thing On? with the overlapping dialogue and rough, unpolished look. This is a completely character-driven film. It’s more about the people in it than the things they do. It’s about how they act and react. It’s about how they interact and relate. That Alex has sex with another woman isn’t as significant as Tess finding out about it from his act. She reacts with a mix of anger, annoyance and jealousy. The acting by both leads, needless to say, is superb. They both capture the subtle nuances of their characters, two adults dealing with a major life change and the complicated feelings that come with it.
The rest of the cast is equally great. Andra Day (The United States vs. Billie Holiday) plays their friend Christine, the sort of person who says exactly what’s on her mind without hesitation or regret. In one of the film’s most powerful moments, she launches into a two-minute monologue about why she dislikes Alex (marriage made him complacent). She’s married to Alex’s best friend Balls (Cooper), an actor who’s always changing up his facial hair for a role. He’s the zag to Alex’s zig. He’s an upbeat sort who always manages to show up when Alex’s spirits need lifting. What’s good about Cooper’s performance is that he makes a memorable impression without stealing the whole show. He leaves plenty of room for the main stars to shine.
Christine Ebersole (Licorice Pizza) and Ciaran Hinds (Belfast) are in top form as Alex’s parents. She’s the dominant partner; he prefers to retreat into his hobbies. She’s blunt; he’s soft-spoken. Both are supportive of their son. He, in particular, offers up great advice precisely when it’s needed.
Is This Thing On? has a neo-realistic quality to it. The gritty cinematography by Matthew Libatique, in conjunction with Charlie Green’s unpredictable editing, gives the film an almost verite quality. It’s like you’re in the room observing the characters’ behavior. An intelligent screenplay by Cooper, Arnett and Chappell perfectly supplements the film’s artistic aspects. It’s very knowing about marriage and what it takes to make it work. I was watching it from the viewpoint of somebody who’s been married for 18 ½ years. There is a lot of truth to it. It’s not always pleasant to watch, but the naked truth of any situation rarely is. Either way, it’s one of the year’s best movies.
