The Big Sick(2017)- Review
The Big Sick is a romantic comedy written by Emily V. Gordon & Kumail Nanjiani. It is based on the real life love story of the two. Kumail is an Uber driver by day and a struggling stand-up comedian by night. While he has embraced the American lifestyle to the full, his family still live within the ideals & culture of their native Pakistan. Kumail not wanting to hurt his family’s feelings tries to keep up the ruse of being as devoted as they are. One fine day after a stand-up gig he meets Emily Gordon (Zoe Kazan), an American psychology student, they happen to like each other from the get go. Both acknowledge that their little rendezvous is nothing serious, but still keep on being around each other from time to time. Kumail’s parents, assuming he is single, start to set him up with Pakistani women for an arranged marriage. As time passes Kumail keeps on meeting women while Emily, safe to say now his girlfriend, isn’t aware of the dates he goes to. While everything is going stupendously things turn awry when Emily gets to know about his parent’s wish to see him married to a Pakistani women. Immediately they decide to break things up. Soon after Kumail gets notified that Emily is in the hospital and has him listed as his emergency contact. What follows next is a comic few weeks that come when he finds himself in the awkward set of situations being around Emily’s parents while she is induced in a coma, all while still trying to keep it all a secret from his parents.
Seeing that Kumail playing himself and writing the story, there should not be many doubts about the story or its authenticity. He successfully keeps the acting fresh not giving away the fact that he isn’t playing a character but playing himself. Ray Romano & Anupam Kher act greatly and are delightful as the two sets of fathers. The dialogues are well written keeping in mind to have a tandem between real story and its backdrop while making it simple enough for the general audiences to understand. The comedy is well balanced out with the not so happy story playing out on screen.
On the face of it the movie is near perfect but gives out on close inspection. While the movie stays to the point and keeps reality in check, it floats about the story not going too much in depth always. The music and soundtrack are at par but could have been utilized in a better way. Finally, Zoe Kazan’s acting seems shallow and could have done better delving into the character seeing as to she was playing a real person.
All in all it is a good watch considering the lack of good rom-coms created these days. It is not a must-watch but comes very close to having that accolade. If you are a hopeless romantic or are in a joyous mood you’ll enjoy it for sure.
Acting- 8
Casting- 8
Cinematography- 9
Dialogue- 7.5
Directing- 8
Editing & Effects- 7
Sound & Music- 7
Story- 8.5
Storytelling- 9
Rating- 8
Available on: Amazon Prime