Is This Thing On? (2025) ***1/2

 

Written by Will Arnett, directed by Bradley Cooper, and based on the life of a British comic named John Bishop, “Is This Thing On?” is a quiet, funny dramedy about a failing marriage, a failing life, and turning it all around.

Arnett stars as Alex, who is splitting up with his wife Tess (Laura Dern). Alex and Tess try to make the separation as easy as possible on their kids and their friend group. It isn't easy, as people have a tendency to take sides in these situations. Meanwhile, their bickering friends Christine (Andra Day) and Balls (Bradley Cooper) seem like the ones who should really be splitting up.

One night, on a whim, Alex signs up to do open-mike comedy, and he turns out to be good at it. His new hobby allows him to talk about his life, and the thrill of doing something creative gives him a newfound confidence and perspective. At the same time, Tess, who was once an Olympic volleyball player, is wondering if she peaked too soon.

“Is This Thing On?” is something we need more of: an unassuming, empathetic story about grown-up relationships. The emotions are real, the performances are excellent, and the comedy is actually funny.

3.5 stars out of 5

Joy Ride (2023) ***

 

When Audrey (Ashley Park) gets the chance to visit China to close a business deal, she takes along her friend Lolo (Sherry Cola), who invites her weird, K-pop-obsessed cousin DeadEye (Sabrina Wu). In China, the girls meet up with Audrey's college friend Kat (Stephanie Hsu), formerly a horny wild-girl, but now an actress famous in China for playing good girls and saving herself for marriage. The four wind up on an Odyssey to find Audrey's Chinese birth mother, and there you go.

It's not a bad setup for a raunchy, road-trip comedy, featuring Asian women instead of black women, college guys, or middle-aged dudes. I guess everyone needs their own road-trip movie, and now Asian girls have theirs. I found it distracting how focused on race the characters were, but maybe that's how it is when you're a minority. As a white dude in a place that is mostly white, it's easy for me not to think about race. Audrey and Lolo, as the only Asians in their small, Ohio town, were probably never allowed to forget that they look different from everyone else. As Audrey says in Beijing, “If I lived here, I wouldn't always be the 'Asian girl'. I could be the 'smart girl' or the 'funny, nice girl'”.

As road-trip comedies go, “Joy Ride” is reasonably watchable. Director Adele Lim is best known as a writer on “Crazy Rich Asians”, but here, in her directorial debut, she shows promise behind the camera. She gets decent performances from a talented group of comediennes, and she keeps the story humming along, bringing it together in an hour and a half, which is remarkably concise for a movie these days. “Joy Ride” is not going to change your life, but if you want an uncomplicated laugh, take the ride.

3 stars out of 5

Send Help (2026) ****1/2

 

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this film. I never saw a trailer for it, and the posters just featured Rachel McAdams on an island, covered in blood. Then I learned it is directed by Sam Raimi, who has done some truly great, original films (“Darkman”, The “Evil Dead” movies), but has also signed on for some Marvel Comics movies, so I had no idea which Sam Raimi would be showing up here. Turns out, “Send Help” is old-school Raimi – original, hilarious, in-your-face horror-comedy with a very sly sense of humor.

Rachel McAdams plays Linda Liddle, a nerdy office drone who is truly great at her job, but gets passed over for a promotion in favor of her boss's incompetent frat-buddy. Linda doesn't let it get her down. She talks to her pet bird, puts her nose to the grindstone, and vows to work even harder to earn her place. Then the company plane goes down, leaving Linda and said boss (Dylan O'Brien) as the only survivors on a tropical island. One other thing about Linda: she has aspirations to be on the show “Survivor.” Turns out she has made herself an expert on desert island survival. Even as she saves his life, though, her boss Bradley has trouble giving Linda the credit she deserves. The longer they are stranded, the more friction arises.

I won't give away any more than that. “Send Help” is full of surprises that I don't want to ruin. Raimi gets outstanding performances from both his stars, and McAdams ought to get an Oscar nomination. “Send Help” is funny, oddly-dark, and the best new movie I've seen so far this year.

4.5 stars out of 5