A Shoutout to Every Comedian in “Group Therapy”

There’s a scene in the excellent documentary Group Therapy (currently available on Amazon Prime) in which comedian Mike Birbiglia is talking about his daughter’s ballet recital.

He tells his daughter, “You were fantastic,” and she responds, “Dad, you would say I was fantastic even if I wasn’t fantastic.”

I say this to say that I think Group Therapy is fantastic, and I’d say that even if my cousin Neil Berkeley didn’t direct it (which he did).

Neil makes entertaining documentaries that are full of heart, exceptional storytelling, and thoughtful artistic filmmaking decisions (like the intro to this film, which has a great vibe, and the way that vibe returns in a mid-film intermission). His debut Beauty is Embarrassing, a doc about the relentlessly creative artist Wayne White, has long been my favorite, but this new one is very easy to love and may end up taking the top spot in time.

Group Therapy brings together six comedians and moderator Neil Patrick Harris to talk about life, comedy, and mental health in front of a live audience. Along with the discussion, the film is interspersed with interviews, clips of standup specials, and personal footage that deepens the story and connects you with the comedians. As a fan of both stand-up comedy and therapy, I think it’s perfect.

In therapeutic settings, group therapy can have many benefits, including “realizing that you’re not alone” and “gaining new perspectives” from seeing how other people at different stages of life have dealt with their own challenges.

In this film, each person balances their hilarity with vulnerability, resulting in an experience that benefitted me as a viewer seemingly as much as it benefitted them as participants. (Plus, it’s just really, really funny.)

In recognition of each person’s contribution to the group dynamic I’d like to briefly compliment each of the participants. Their honesty, empathy, humor, and humanity was powerful to witness, and I’m pumped that my cousin Neil helped make this.

Atsuko Okatsuka

Oh man is Atsuko funny, but she is also extremely relatable in the perspectives that she shares about therapy from someone who does not currently have a therapist, namely that it can be confusing and intimidating to get started.

It takes a lot of courage to ask for help for mental health. Sometimes people judge you for it. Sometimes you judge yourself for it. Sometimes, even though it helps, it’s just really tough to keep showing up and talking about difficult things.

I felt like Atsuko did a great job illustrating some of the fears and stigmas and complications around therapy, and that’s a very relatable perspective based on my own experience.

Gary Gulman

In 2019 Gary let the us into his inner world in a profound way through his masterful HBO comedy special “The Great Depresh”, which is currently 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

In this film, he unexpectedly tears up talking about how his brother first encouraged him to get help for depression. In the midst of being overcome with emotions, he stops and says, “I don’t know why you cry,” takes a moment, and goes on to finish the story.

If you can watch him go through that and not recognize that feeling of being overwhelmed yourself, then please start a podcast so we can also learn from you while we learn brave vulnerability from Gary.

London Hughes

Part of the point of group therapy generally is that listening to someone else expertly explain what they have gone through can put words to our own unexplained feelings, and I felt that for sure listening to London.

The way she describes how she dealt with issues of identity, achievement, pressure, and finding her own voice just made so much sense to me, and I found myself relating to a lot of what she says about self-confidence, like “Every negative thing that anyone has ever said about me, I’ve already thought it about myself” and “I probably am not good enough to stop, so I just keep on going.”

It’s just really cool to see someone be honest about what they are figuring out in life, and I appreciate her for it.

Mike Birbiglia

Near the beginning of the conversation, Mike says, “In my town in Massachusetts, the class clown was the mean guy.” As a Massachusetts native myself, I totally get that.

Reflecting on this quote, and the way that Mike shows up in the film, makes me think of another form of group comedy, the roast, where all of the jokes are at someone else’s expense.

Not judging, I’ve watched and laughed at lots of roasts, but I think the next time I see one I’m going to have some different thoughts in my head because the way that Mike and the other comedians can share about serious topics, hold space for each other, and still make incredibly funny jokes in this group setting feels like a more humane, more beneficial form of comedy.

Neil Patrick Harris

As the moderator and only non-stand-up, Neil (not cousin) openly questions his role in the proceedings, showing a bit of imposter syndrome while still doing a great job.

It’s honestly great to watch someone accomplished question their self-confidence and still do the thing anyway.

Also, I get why that struggle exists a bit because he tells a story about Los Angeles / showbusiness that illustrates the constant pressure to keep reaching a higher level of fame and success, and while I’m not personally trying to get into Madonna’s ultra-exclusive VIP, I do very much get the challenge of chasing a someday version of happiness vs. learning how to appreciate what you have today.

Nicole Byer

I so very much appreciated Nicole sharing her experience with ADHD, even to the specifics of what it was like to be in the room and experience the conversation while not being on her medication that day.

As a partner to a person with ADHD, every time someone shares honestly about their experience it makes me feel a lot less alone, and I know it helps Kelly too.

Nicole and Gary talk to each other about what it’s like to write jokes using an analogy referencing the book Bird by Bird, and Nicole says, “Me personally I look at all the birds in the sky and I go, ‘Oh my God, how on earth am I gonna do all of this?’”

That feeling is a feeling that we all have sometimes, and that Kelly has a lot, so to hear Nicole give voice to it was very powerful.

Tig Notaro

If you’re not familiar with Tig’s famous Largo set from 2012, I think you should watch the movie and experience the story instead of having me spoil it, because it is pretty stunning.

What I will spoil is how hilarious Tig is in this room, and how impressive it is that she is able to lighten the mood so often without insulting anyone or distracting from the conversation, ensuring that the environment always had the right vibes.

If you’d like to laugh and feel some real feelings, I thoroughly recommend Group Therapy. Great job Neil!

Do you have a cousin who is doing cool stuff? Or are you the cousin doing cool stuff? If you or your cousin needs a new brand or a good strategy, you should call us! jed@kindandfunny.com.