Will they? Won’t they? That simple question is what drives so many comedies. Usually it’s found in movies or TV shows about two people who can’t stand each other but are clearly meant for each other, so the question becomes can they reconcile their differences and find a way to be together. That sets up a happy ending everybody wants and expects and it’s one that comedies, more often than not, deliver.
In a lot of ways, Don’t Think Twice, the new comedy from Sleepwalk with Me writer-director Mike Birbiglia, is a will they, won’t they kind of movie, but it’s not about whether or not a man and a woman will end up happily ever after. It’s about whether or not a group of very funny comedians who perform improv together in New York City will land a highly coveted spot on their equivalent of Saturday Night Live.
They won’t.
That’s not a spoiler or anything, it’s the entire premise of the movie. We meet a group of likeable comedians (Mike Birbiglia, Gillian Jacobs, Chris Gethard, Kate Micucci, Tami Sagher and Keegan-Michael Key) and quickly see they’re all funny, relatable, great people who are remarkably good at what they do and would fit right in on a show like SNL. It’s the kind of job they all desperately want even though no one will confess their true desperation. So, you can imagine it creates a bit of a rift within the group when one of them does land the job.
But what makes Don’t Think Twice such a terrific, insightful movie is that it doesn’t go the easy route and have the group suddenly turn on the successful person. Instead the group turns inward, with each person questioning whether or not they actually have what it takes to be a success. Anyone who has ever shared ambition with like-minded people can sympathize. It’s a deeply human story about what happens when the star of someone you know rises higher than yours and the effect it has on your psychology. Maybe you don’t have what it takes. Maybe you never did have what it takes. Maybe you simply do not deserve to have it happen to you. Maybe you’re just a won’t kind of person.
That sounds dour and depressing, but the genius of what Birbiglia has done with Don’t Think Twice is deliver such heavy thoughts through a consistently funny, meaningful exploration of why it’s okay to not play in the big leagues, and that one's worth isn't purely defined by the approval of others. The idea that not everything in life needs to be a hierarchy you try to climb is a subtle but empowering message.
It certainly helps that Birbiglia’s magical hand knows all the right ways to cast a moviemaker's spell. The cinematography dances with the comedians as they perform, making the audience feel like they’re a part of the group. And speaking of that group, his cast is vital and present, with each character’s perspective, flaws and all, fully realized. The entire roster is great, but in particular Gillian Jacobs shines as someone who undoubtedly has what it takes but is unsure of what she actually wants out of life. It’s the kind of role and performance we’ve never seen from her before and it’s so on point that it will force anyone who has only ever thought of her as just Britta from Community to see her in a very different light.
