In the new comedy thriller “Self Reliance”, Jake Johnson plays a lonely man named Tommy who is stuck in a mundane existence. Ever since splitting up with his long-time girlfriend nearly two years ago, Tommy has seen his life become one long boring routine. Every day it’s the same thing. No zest, no excitement, and no social life outside of his mother (Nancy Lenehan) and two sisters, Amy (Mary Holland) and Mary (Emily Hampshire).

But one day everything changes as he’s walking to work. A black limousine pulls up next to him and inside is Andy Sandberg (playing himself). He asks the starstruck Tommy to get in which he promptly does. It turns out that Sandberg is the paid spokesman for a dark web reality TV game show. In it the contestant must stay alive for 30 days while hunters try to track him down and kill him. If he survives he will win one million dollars. Weird, right?

But there’s an interesting rule (or loophole as Tommy interprets it). He can only be targeted if he is alone. Any moment he’s not within close proximity of someone he can be killed. He first goes to his family thinking he’ll stick close to them for the 30 days. But they think he’s after attention and refuse to play along. He then approaches a homeless man named James (a hilarious Biff Wiff) and hires him to stay by his side 24 hours a day. But James isn’t the most reliable. Terrified and paranoid, Tommy finds what may be his means of survival in the slightly neurotic fellow contestant named Maddy (Anna Kendrick).

In addition to starring in “Self Reliance”, Jake Johnson also produces, writes, and makes his directorial debut with mostly satisfying results. At times the movie feels like the work of a first-time feature filmmaker, lacking assurance and focus. But Johnson has a great feel for comic timing and delivery, working in the same aura as Jay and Mark Duplass. Yet he has a distinct oddball flavor all his own, melding deadpan with the absurd, resulting in some genuinely laugh-out-loud funny scenes.

While the story centers around a wild and wacky premise, the movie itself is pretty tame, playing is safe rather than really going for it. Instead Johnson sticks with his strengths which is a key reason why the movie works in the end. Not all of the humor lands yet it hits a lot more than it misses. And it’s helped by an all-in cast who were consistently cracking me up (Hampshire is a hoot). It’s a promising debut in a genre that can always use new comedic voices. “Self Reliance” is now streaming on Hulu.

VERDICT – 3 STARS