You don’t need me to tell you that tragedy plus time equals comedy. This is essentially the formula for Bradley Cooper’s third directorial effort, Is This Thing On?, and it continues the actor-director’s streak of simple but effective character studies. But, rather than leveling up his production budget, Cooper has chosen to scale back and create a more intimate, personal story that still caters to his sensibilities as a storyteller.

For fans of his recent work, it probably came as a bit of a shock to learn that Cooper wouldn’t set himself as the star, but would still make an appearance as a (mostly comedic, one-note) supporting performer. Will Arnett literally and figuratively steps into the spotlight as Alex Novak, a recently separated New Yorker who tries his hand at stand-up comedy as a way to vent his frustrations with his life. But life as a comedian isn’t some long-held dream of Alex’s. Rather, he stumbles upon it as a crafty way to get a free drink after a final night of socializing with his wife Tess (Laura Dern) amongst old friends. He has no prepared material, but manages to get enough laughs to boost his otherwise depleted self-confidence and gets the itch to get on stage again.

Is This Thing On? closely hews to a kind of riff on Marriage Story (the film which won Dern an Oscar), as it presents Alex and Tess navigating life as single parents and trying to make it work. The two get along amicably for the sake of their two pre-pubescent sons, but Cooper’s film goes through the predictable movements of the newly separated. Arnett, Cooper, and Mark Chappell wrote the screenplay, and it’s reportedly loosely based on the life of British comedian John Bishop, who had a similarly unplanned entry into comedy. But Cooper breaks out of the familiar mold thanks to the depth of characterization with both Alex and Tess.

There’s jealousy, one-upmanship, blame, and guilt from both parties when they reckon with what led to the end of their marriage. Unfortunately, we don’t learn the exact cause of the end of the marriage until later in the film. This can make it harder to understand what’s at stake, but I believe Cooper stuck with this in order to keep things even, and prevent audiences from picking a side to root for or against. If there’s any overarching theme within Is This Thing On?, it’s in our refusal to be defined by one thing later in life. Alex has nothing once his marriage ends. Post-divorce, Tess wants to be known as more than a wife and mom, and seeks to return to coaching volleyball, a sport which defined her since she was eleven.

Arnett, who’s more well known for his voiceover and TV work, gives a deeply felt performance as a man clinging on to anything that can give him meaning when everything else is falling apart. Dern is expectedly great, playing into Tess’s frustrations and insecurities, even if the character feels a little pre-written at times. Most importantly, the two share a lived-in chemistry that feels like it’s existed the boundaries of Is This Thing On?. Cinematographer Matthew Libatique’s camera work is less showy than Maestro, but he and Cooper still know how to create intimacy through imagery – most of Alex’s early stand-up scenes, and conversations between him and Tess, are filmed in ultra-closeups.

A lesser film would make Alex a gifted natural once he steps on the comedy stage; he actually has numerous kinks to work out with his material, even after a handful of appearances. Nor does he have any illusions of grandeur, hoping to ditch his (unseen) finance job for a life in the entertainment business. There is some manufactured drama once Alex’s stand-up life crosses over with his real life – he tries as long as possible to keep it secret from his friends and family – but it’s sharply underplayed when it needs to be. The later half of the film contains many smartly written conversations about the nature of healthy relationships, and it makes up for any cliché plot developments.

It’s easy to classify Is This Thing On? as a lesser directorial effort from Cooper. Sure, it may not have the stand-up-and-cheer moments from A Star is Born, or the bravado of Maestro, but it still manages to feel like a Cooper film nonetheless. There’s a familiarity within the film, but it’s a breezy film with complicated, likeable characters, which lends to multiple rewatches.

Searchlight Pictures will release Is This Thing On? in select theatres nationwide on December 19.

OSCAR POTENTIAL:

• After getting blanked at the Golden Globe nominations, the Oscar chances for Is This Thing On? are slim. Perhaps it could sneak into the Original Screenplay race, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.