MORAL OF THE MOVIE

Just because something works for you doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll work for others and vice-versa. This applies to things like religion, cultural traditions, professional goals, etc. In other words, to each their own.

WHO I THINK WOULD MOST ENJOY THIS MOVIE

The Big Sick will be a big hit with anyone who has ever felt pressure to be a certain way by their parents and/or culture. Also, fans of unique Rom/Coms will particularly like this one as it breaks the formulaic mold within the genre.

ADDITIONAL NOTES/COMMENTARY

Based on the real-life story of how this film’s main actor (Kumail Nanjiani) met his wife, The Big Sick is a very heartfelt movie with authentic writing and great performances. The writing is as genuine as it can be given that the writers (Nanjiani and Emily Gordon) were the ones that actually lived the story in real life. As such, the result is a film that is as realistic as it is appealing. Much of the appeal is thanks to Kumail Nanjiani’s super likable personality, but it is also due in part to the supremely talented supporting cast (especially, Holly Hunter and Ray Romano). Despite the story being extremely specific about cultural differences and health issues, it felt very relatable. There are universal themes of not fitting in with the norm, pursuing your dreams, etc. Yet, what makes it so relatable is that you understand where everyone is coming from. All of the characters in this film have clear motivations and understandable actions. This comes back to the moral of the movie that I was referring to earlier. Each character has something that works for them that they promote (ie. Cultural traditions for Nanjiani’s family), but that’s not to say that it’s as simple as right and wrong. Rather, it’s more analogous to different and different. Each person has their own backstory that justifies the way they act and you can understand why they are the way that they are, so you feel for them even if you don’t agree with them. Before I finish up, I must say that this movie absolutely hits all the feels and especially tickles the funny bone in a very intelligent manner when tackling sensitive topics such as racism, islamophobia, cultural shock, etc. Overall, I think this is a great movie covering the themes of compassion and tolerance that stands out among those in its genre for its empathetic yet comical approach towards the amazing real-life story full of how its writers met.