Review: The Big Sick (2017)

My rating	IMDb		Rotten Tomatoes
	Critics	Audience	Critics	Audience
8/10	86/100	7.8/10	98%	90%

Numbers obtained from IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes on September 29, 2017.

Romantic comedies are rare to find these days and are often viewed as “guilty pleasures”, which is completely different from the 90s, when the genre was very popular. Maybe that’s why The Big Sick was liked by so many people in the U.S.: it was a breath of fresh air from the summer blockbusters and sequels. Besides, it is extremely interesting and funny.

Based on life events of comedian Kumail Nanjiani it tells his story: a stand-up comedian in Chicago, who shares an apartment and drives Uber to make end meets.His family is constantly trying to set him up with girls from their country (Pakistan), but he never likes them. Instead, he collects the photos of all of the candidates in a box in his room.

One night, he meets Emily (Zoe Kazan) after his show. There’s a period of “we are not in a relationship”, but they eventually start dating. Because she’s white, he hides the relationship from his family. After a series of events, she ends up in a hospital, where doctors are trying to understand what is wrong with her. That’s when Kumail meets Emily’s family: her dad (Ray Romano) tries to make small talk, but her mom (Holly Hunter) clearly is not in the mood for anything.

It may not sound like a funny movie but trust me, it is. Mainly due to the awkward interaction these characters have due to unfortunate circumstances. The whole cast is great, with very good timing, but Holly Hunter is absolutely perfect in this role.

Hopefully the success of The Big Sick will encourage filmmakers to invest again in this genre.