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Is This Thing On?
Searchlight Pictures has premiered the teaser trailer for Is This Thing On?, and it suggests we are in for a sharp, melancholic comedy that mines the humour and heartbreak of mid-life crisis through the lens of stand-up. This isn’t the flashy, celebrity-driven comedy we often see; rather, it’s a more intimate, character-focused British affair, focusing on the painful rebirth of a man who suddenly finds his life has become his newest, darkest material.
The trailer introduces us to Alex Novak, a man whose life is disintegrating as he attempts to navigate the brutal world of amateur stand-up comedy. We first meet him in a dingy venue, heading to the stage with the low-key anxiety of someone whose biggest challenge isn’t the hostile crowd but the shambles he’s left behind. The setup is simple yet effective: a bartender directing him "Just straight behind you, down the stairs," underscoring the literal descent he is making both physically and emotionally.
The core of the film, and the trailer, revolves around a crushing marital breakdown. Alex's on-stage material is less polished joke-telling and more a public processing of his recent divorce. The delivery is dry, self-deprecating, and utterly relatable: “I think I’m getting a divorce. What tipped me off was that I’m living in an apartment on my own. Yeah. And my wife and kids don’t live there, so… That was probably the… the biggest clue.” This is not belly-laugh comedy; it’s the nervous, pitying laughter of recognition, and it sets the film’s tone perfectly—a tragicomedy where the punchlines are born of genuine, searing pain.
The dialogue further explores the confusion and regret surrounding his relationship’s end. Alex muses, "I’m not exactly sure what happened. Came home from work one day. Someone said, 'Is this thing over?' Pretty sure it was her." He then poignantly notes that this was probably his wife's way of telling him off for "not paying attention." This demonstrates the film's knack for blending heavy emotional baggage with understated humour. A particularly resonant piece of wisdom offered is that a "real relationship is finding somebody you can also be unhappy with," suggesting a deeper, more complicated view of love than typical romantic comedies.
The trailer concludes by highlighting the friction between his new life and his old pain, as a friend scolds him: "Yeah, what’s funny about your life? This is why she threw you out!" But the final exchange—a quiet, hopeful declaration: “I’m gonna be okay. I’ll be okay”—leaves us with the distinct feeling that Is This Thing On? will be a tender and unflinching look at how we process catastrophe. It promises a mature, funny, and profoundly sad story about an unexpected second act, confirming it as one of the most intriguing British releases on the horizon.
