Critics reviews

The characters' disappointment comes from a place of experience. Birbiglia has lived these scenarios during his time as a standup comic, and he deftly maneuvers the awkwardness characters feel being tugged by competing emotions. While Don't Think Twice shies away from the dark and demented impulses of standup (we have Louie for that), it exposes the uncomfortable realization that change is a necessary evil when it comes to creating great art.

The film is so spot-on in its evocation of that whole [improv] "scene," onstage and off—its intimacy, competition, struggles and rhythms—that at times it feels like a documentary. The movie has the patience and intelligence to approach extremely esoteric concepts: improv's "group mind," the generosity of good performers, the specific rules of improv and how they impact the group outside the theatre.

Mike Birbiglia's poignant comic drama Don't Think Twice honestly depicts the ways that seriously funny people face ego and jealousy — and craft their art.

With a cast comprised of improv veterans like Chris Gethard, Tami Sangher, and Kate Micucci (Garfunkel and Oates), it's the somewhat against-type performances from Key and Jacobson that steal the show here, with both actors nailing the harder-hitting emotional notes. Unfolding with breezy naturalism, this insider look at the personal and professional hang-ups of comedians is funny, yes, but also disarmingly poignant.

As an actor, [Birbiglia] isn't a star, but he has a loose everyman presence that lingers even in the celebrity-rich projects in which he's appeared. And as a director, he exhibits a quiet sense of craftsmanship that allows his actors to find themselves and figuratively sing, both as individuals and within an ensemble. Birbiglia practices the group ethos that are espoused by The Commune.

Birbiglia films what he knows, offering ample and intricate scenes of improvisations performed onstage, along with an insider's view of the industry, and he pushes his colleagues to the fore—especially Keegan-Michael Key, who has a drolly ambiguous turn as a self-anointed star, and Gillian Jacobs, playing a powerhouse performer tormented by self-doubt, who is the film's movingly dramatic center.

Writer-director Mike Birbiglia condenses years of experience in live comedy into this smart, affectionate take on the rivalry, love, ambition, and creative juices that fuel the lives of professional comedians.

It doesn't give each character equal screen time, and some stories feel more developed than others. But each plot has its own compelling hook, and they dovetail nicely into a satisfying balance of humor and melancholic yearning.