Is This Thing On? sees Bradley Cooper (the director ) opt for a smaller scale type of film compared to his previous, two Oscar-nominated efforts.
A Star is Born (2018 ) was a sensational crowd-pleaser of a film, with a heartrending love story at its core between Cooper and Lady Gaga. It captured the hearts of audiences everywhere, and more than justified the decision to make a fourth version of the same story.
Maestro (2023 ) felt like Cooper was cashing in on the plaudits he received, earning enough trust to be ambitious with his craft. It is a grand-scaled, operatic biopic that, despite Cooper’s impressive direction, suffers from an uninteresting script, and an abundance of style over substance.
His approach to Is This Thing on? is noticeably pared back, possibly due to the immense workload of Maestro or its lukewarm reception. Either way, Cooper’s third film is certainly fascinating when compared to his significantly different, previous directorial work.
With his marriage facing collapse, Alex (Will Arnett ) stumbles upon an open-mic stand-up club. Promised a free drink, Will participates, unexpectedly finding catharsis by sharing his life struggles, and drawing laughter from the crowd. We follow as Alex tries to balance this new hobby alongside changes to relationships with retired athlete wife Tess (Laura Dern ), his children, and his friends.
My most positive takeaway from this film was seeing Cooper’s willingness to portray a more intimate character drama, in contrast to the flashiness of his previous films. With Maestro especially, you can sense Cooper’s desperation to impress the audience with his direction, as well as his transformational makeover. Here, that is all stripped away.
This direction is refreshingly much more inelegant.
The handheld camerawork stays tight to Alex, inviting us into his perspective and emotional state through each speedbump. This is most effective when Alex takes to the stage for the first time. His strained disposition looms large in the frame, exposed to both his audience, and us.
While deciding on a more restrained approach is commendable, it ultimately works against the film. It becomes visually stale and, as a result, becomes quite lifeless.
There is an intention to make these characters, and their situations, somewhat relatable and recognisable. Casting Will Arnett, an unusual choice for a lead role in a dramatic film, as the protagonist, is proof that we are supposed to feel closer to his character than if Cooper was himself playing him.
Strangely though, the characters are clearly affluent with little acknowledgment of that fact.
Alex works in finance, wears nice suits, and moves into a fine apartment after separating. His wife Tess is a retired Olympic volleyball player who exercises regularly, and after suddenly showing an interest in coaching, basically walks into the most prestigious coaching position without much effort.
We never see these characters struggle, or work for what they have achieved, and therefore it is difficult to show much sympathy for their supposed crises. Even the reasons for their separation are muddy at best, and pretty much swept under the rug. In that regard, the film is pretty lazy.
Furthermore, the story’s turns and relationship arcs all feel very clichéd. The subject matter is universal, but the total lack of depth and failed attempts at sincerity prevent this film from connecting emotionally - at all.
Cooper’s own appearance as Alex’s spaced-out college friend also feels like an ill-fitting component, jammed into an already poorly conceived machine.
2 / 5 Stars
In Galway cinemas now.
