Review: Is This Thing On? – inspired by John Bishop

Is This Thing On? feels like a very American slice-of-life comedy, yet beneath the glossy exterior of big houses and expensive cars lies a low-key story about communication, vulnerability, and the absurdity of finding your voice.

Will Arnett stars as a man whose marriage is coming to an amicable, if confusing, end. He falls into stand-up comedy of all things – a pursuit that seems miles away from his comfortable life. His partner, played by the consistently powerful Laura Dern, is in a similar drift, having floated apart from her husband despite their two adorable children and lack of material worries.

A Very American Slice of Life

Despite the sun-drenched, high-net-worth aesthetic, the film is actually loosely based on the life of British comedian John Bishop. It’s an odd juxtaposition; at one point, Arnett, who co-wrote the screenplay, is seen wearing a Liverpool FC top – an Easter egg nod to the Liverpudlian Bishop.

Arnett is entirely believable as the “average Joe” who discovers a natural, albeit raw, spark of comedy within himself. It is not a story of sudden fame, but rather a man finding a way to process his mental state through a microphone. Laura Dern matches him beat for beat, not as the cliché “suffering wife,” but as a complex woman who has similarly lost her tether.

There are moments when the film threatens to become surreal, particularly when Bradley Cooper (who also directs and co-wrote the script) wanders into the frame as an almost-constantly high actor (called Balls) looking for his big break. It adds a touch of Hollywood meta-commentary to what is otherwise a grounded, human story.

The Difficulty of Speaking

The plot navigates the “will they, won’t they” of separation and potential new romances. Will Arnett’s character meet a sexy comedian? Will Dern’s character retreat to her past life as a sports star? While these questions are asked, the film is sometimes more interested in the silence between them.

One of the standout moments is Arnett’s character retelling the story of a fight with his wife on stage. He can talk to a room full of strangers about his inner thoughts, but he cannot turn to the mother of his children and say the same things. It poses a sharp question: Do we make things unnecessarily hard for ourselves?

The film doesn’t force a “Hollywood ending.” Instead, it reaches a point of maturity where we can step back from their lives, knowing they have grown as people. It is not necessarily a feel-good movie, nor is it strictly a dating movie, but there is something refreshing about its honesty.

Overall

Is This Thing On? is a thumbs up. It is a film about the complexity of characters who don’t quite know what they want, but are self-aware enough to realise something is missing. If you are in a relationship, you might find yourself nodding at the little foibles couples develop -the inside nods, the shared laughs, but also those quirks that eventually bug the hell out of you.

If these characters had only managed to be this honest with themselves ten years ago, things might have looked very different. Watch this movie at the right time in your life, and it might just speak to you.