User reviews

The Big Sick tells the true story of Kumail(Kumail Nanjiani). Kumail is an amateur stand-up comedian. He meets & falls in love with Emily(Zoe Kazan). Kumail & Emily become a couple. Now they have to decide whether their relationship has a future, due to the massive difference in their cultures. This makes things between Kumail & Emily, complicated.

The Big Sick is a fantastic movie. What is fascinating about this film is that, it's based on the real life love story of Kumail(who also wrote the film) & co-writer of the script, Emily V. Gordon. Director Michael Showalter has done a bang-up job, balancing the romantic, comedic & dramatic elements of the movie. This film is laugh-out- loud funny but, it can also make you feel emotional, from time to time. The performances are spot on. Kumail Nanjiani is brilliant as Kumail. Zoe Kazan is spectacular as Emily. Nanjiani & Kazan share an adorable & effortless chemistry, in all their scenes together. Holly Hunter is outstanding as Beth. Ray Romano is awesome as Terry. Anupam Kher is superb as Azmat. Zenobia Shroff is great as Sharmeen. Adeel Akhtar is excellent as Naveed. Bo Burnham, Aidy Bryant, Kurt Braunohler & Shenaz Treasurywala are impressive as CJ, Mary, Chris & Fatima, respectively. The Big Sick is a must watch for romantic comedy fans. Go for it, as soon as you can.

The Big Sick was very warmly-received at Austin's SXSW Film Festival. The Big Sick is a superbly original romantic comedy/drama based on a true story of Kumail Nanjiani and his now-wife Emily Gardner; they co-wrote the script together. Kumail stars as himself. It starts from the premise of the inherent difficulties of interracial, inter-religious relationship between a Pakistani- American comedian and white woman in Chicago who face both the normal difficulties of relationships combined with the pressures of Kumail's overbearing, but loving family who demand that he participate in an arranged marriage to a Pakistani girl. Kumail is caught between competing worlds. The situation spins out-of-control when Emily becomes extremely ill and Kumail has to deal with her parents.

The amazing part of this movie is that it deals with deeply serious complex issues, but does so with humor and grace. The screenplay is remarkable and nuanced, but is infused with a comedian's sense of humor that captures the real human comedy that exists in all personal relationships. You will die laughing when Emily's bewildered father turns to Kumail in a hospital cafeteria and asks him, "What do you think of 9/11?" and Kumail responds as a comedian should to such an outrageously stupid question. Ray Romano and Holly Hunter are excellent in the roles of Emily's parents.

While based on a true story, I'm sure parts have been fictionalized to bring the drama and the humor of the events to the screen, but it appears that the basic Romeo & Juliet premise is based on the screen writers' real relationship. The film's ability to balance the deadly serious and the comedic reminds me of the wonderful film 50/50 (2011) which also dealt with a deadly illness with a similar light touch. This beautiful film which deals so well with the complexities of overcoming cultural differences serves as a good anecdote to our charged political climate and especially with the demonization of Islam that has become all too dangerous in this country. I hope it is the breakout comedy hit of the summer when it goes into wide release in July.

A romcom that's as romantic as it was funny. The fact that it's all based on a true story. It manages to make you laugh and smile even at the saddest moments and it all feels real. You get to see how difficult it can be for two people from different cultures and religion to get together may be. Haven't seen any rom com like it, how it centers around an event so bereaved for the main characters yet manages to put a smile on your face in the end. It's not mind blowingly good but I really like it.

One of my favorite things to do is go into a movie completely blind. Not watch a trailer, look at a poster, or even the cast list. It's incredibly difficult to do in today's age, especially because of how much I enjoy watching trailers, but when the chance comes along to see a movie with no prior knowledge, I take it.

The Big Sick is one of those rare movies that presents itself as 3 genres, in this case Drama, Comedy, and Romance, and it services each of those genres equally. So well that you have to mention all 3 if you're talking about the movie. It's not just a Rom-Com or a Rom- Dram, it's most certainly a Rom-Com-Dram. I haven't seen a film so effortlessly balance the 3 genres. This is all while seemingly reinvent the formula for a romantic comedy to beautifully fresh results. The Big Sick uses witty humor, charming leads, and socially important topics to give us the best film of the summer thus far.

A romance is only as good as its leads and their chemistry. Luckily, Kumail Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan grace the screen with a refreshingly awkward and charming presence. Being that I haven't really seen either of them in anything else, their relationship felt miraculously original. The Big Sick is based on Nanjiani's actual life, but this felt like a comedy unrestricted by real-life accounts while also honoring a serious subject matter that has its place. However, the two's chemistry isn't all this film has, its entire ensemble is something to behold. Ray Romano, Holly Hunter, Anupam Kher, Adeel Akhtar, Zenobia Shroff, and the various comedians do a wonderful job of rounding out the fantastic cast.

It doesn't fall back into genre clichés or tropes, doesn't fall back into an overly physical comedy (like most comedies do now), and it most certainly doesn't go the direction you think it's going to go. The Big Sick benefits from having a diverse cast and story and an impeccably funny but also poignant script. Heck, it also doesn't hurt that it takes place and was filmed in my hometown of Chicago. But the important thing is, this film restores my faith (once again) in original romantic comedies. Go see it.

+Diverse

+Original

+Funny & heartwarming

+Balances its 3 genres impressively

10/10

Romance, cultural conflict, betrayal, compassion, and redemption. All neatly wrapped within the context of a comedic memoir. Michael Sholwater did a superb job directing and the writing collaboration between Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani gave the audience a wonderfully intimate sense of how the warmth, power, and growth of a couple relationship can expand and strengthen the bonds of family.

No story or movie becomes great without a superb cast. Again Kumail Nanjiani proved his versatility with an amazingly strong performance (in my opinion award winning). And this movie was not a one man show, Zoe Kazan gave just the right energy to her role, Holly Hunter should get an Academy Award for best supporting actress for hers, Ray Romano was excellent as were Zenobia Shroff and Anupam Kher. This was the best movie I've seen in a very long time and just may be the best romantic comedy I've ever seen.

What's more important? Your significant other or your family? That can be a challenging question when it comes to your development as a human being. While it doesn't say much about you and how you react to people, it certainly says something about their personality. Should they side with their lover, then they are willing to dodge bullets and rarely care about the opinions of other people. If they chose family, then they have a lot of beliefs in classic values don't want to lose a possible safety net from their parents.

As a white guy from a middle class family, I already have to process my thoughts if I'm going to go against my parents. I can't imagine how much harder that has to be for those from backgrounds with thicker backgrounds. A good friend of mine is marrying into a Mexican-catholic family despite being nonreligious. He's told me that it's taken him a while to win over his brides family and to be accepted into their traditions. Another friend of mine married an African-American, despite some resistance from his family. Today, I know them as one of the most loving families around. The Big Sick examines love and conflicting with traditions.

Uber driver Kumail (played by Kumail Nanjiani) is an aspiring stand up comedian who is on the verge of acquiring his big break by possibly getting a spot in a popular Canadian comedy festival. He also does a one person play about his experience of growing up in Pakistan and the U.S.A. and how he's adopted the American way of living, despite his family staying safe within their Pakistan values. This includes weekly dinners where his parents keep trying to set him up with potential women from Pakistan to lead into an arraigned marriage. This changes during one of his shows when a heckler stops his show.

Aspiring therapist Emily (played by Zoe Kazan) talks to Kumail about his act and the two end up going home. Though they keep claiming they won't do it again, it leads them to date (without Kumail's parents knowing of course). After a fight and her walking out, Kumail gets a phone call about her in the hospital. He agrees with the doctor to put her in a medical induced coma and uses her phone to contact her parents. Her father Terry (played by Ray Romano) and mother Beth (played by Holly Hunter) arrive as the two and Kumail try to help them deal with their daughter. The Big Sick happens to not only be very cute, but this is a nice examination at these kinds of relationships. You usually don't see many interracial kinships (with the exception of this years Get Out), but this one examines a lot of the complications that arise from both families opinions to between the lovers. It even manages to subvert a lot of tropes you typically find in these romance comedies, like how the couple has their "blowout" much earlier, which only makes the situation even more complicated if she recovers.

The main star and scriptwriter, Kumail Nanjuani, clearly has based this off of his experiences (just wait for the end credits). He knows how to juggle the balance of what probably happened and which moments were exaggerated. He also understands just how much he can hurt his family and how high the consequences were. Though his performance as himself was good, the bigger surprise comes from both Ray Romano and Holly Hunter, both actors I haven't seen in a while. If you think Romano is just repeating his character from Everybody Loves Raymond, then you'll be in for a surprise by how sincere his character is. While I can't spoil the best parts, I can be sure he may have earned himself an Oscar nomination.

The Big Sick also dwells into stand up comedy, which is rarely done on film, into new territory I haven't seen. While most deal with trying to be funny, this one seems to care about how much storytelling is involved. As someone whose done some stand up, I can say that the film is accurate and honest about how hard it is to get noticed. While we're not all trying to get on Saturday Night Live, we at least have different perspectives that are worth addressing.

I'll give this ten stuffed giraffes out of ten. I was taken aback with how much I liked this and hope that a lot of people realize that all kinds of love are worth talking about. The biggest sacrifice you can make depends on what you value, and I hope that this movie can help. I can definitely recommend The Big Sick.

Good watch, probably won't watch again, but can recommend if you can handle a medical emergency adventure.

If you've seen "A Fault in Our Stars", this has a similar vibe for a lot of it.

I'm a fan of Kumail Nanjiani, and I like Emily Gordon more, I'm honestly a little disappointed she didn't star in her own story, but I understand her reasons. Zoe Kazan, Ray Ramono and Holly Hunter are great in this, they all felt very natural.

Now, I know Kumail is the lead, and a good portion of the story focuses on family nonsense, but (even though she's in a coma for a lot of it) Emily is equally a star in the story. That's what this is about, because it's (pretty much) a true story of two people coming together to form one life, and it is SO personal....so very personal. I almost think Kumail wanted to make the movie just so he could stop telling the (rather long) story in person, "Just go watch the movie."

I know that a lot of it is just truth, but the adaptive writing for this is excellent, the structure keeps a well balanced pace between all the events happening, we have (lots) of loss and (powerful) gains. There is even a good bit of comedy worked into the story, but it is hard to handle the heavy weight of Emily's medical story. It might be affecting more due to the timing of it in my life, but, regardless, it's there. It doesn't make for the most upbeat experience.

Emily, obviously, makes a recovery as it happened in real life, and now Kumail has a movie to remind her that he saved her life *eye roll*.

The end is very uplifting, and sometimes it is nice to see a piece of history on screen, but do be aware that is what this is, for the most part.

I know, I know 10 out of 10 is A LOT. However I'm not sure how they could top what they have here. Perhaps make it a little longer?? I NEVER leave reviews but I just laughed so hard I started snorting and couldn't stop for a bit! So did a few others in my row! I think that means something. There were so many times were I was laughing hard enough to cry and where I was smiling from the joy on the screen. Don't get me wrong, it's not all roses and whiskey....but it's def a movie I think everyone should see for a myriad of reasons. I'm so glad this movie was made and that my friend suggested we see it yesterday! I know you'll enjoy it so...You're welcome!

Not every indie comedy can buffet jokes about The X-Files and ISIS in practically the same breath, but director Michael Showalter does it with understated ease in The Big Sick. Be prepared to chuckle a bit over the pop-cult references and weep a bit over the heroine's hospitalization. Also be prepared to laugh about arranged marriages, Pakistani style, and a meet-cute that doesn't always bring a smile.

The anchor of this layered comedy is Kumail Nanjiani, not only a subtly smooth stand-up comedian but also a handsome leading man, whose low-key approach to ambition and love puts him in the pantheon of heroes who are believable, self-effacing, and charming. The story is built around his courtship of Emily (Zoe Kazan) based on his wife, Emily V, Gordon, who is co-writer of this warm, sentimental and ultimately realistic screenplay.

Perhaps that realism is just what so endeared me to this dramedy because it fairly depicts the humor of competing cultures and the strains of everyday life in stand-up comedy Chicago and the world. Yet, it is lighthearted rather than grim, with comic toss-off lines that beg for a return to the film to enjoy the ones you may have missed.

You may also return to see the star turns of Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily's parents, Beth and Terry. The two pros can jump from flip to serious in a flash. They alone are a whole film experience wrapped in another film.

The Big Sick is more mood and tone than plot, a quiet reflection of the complicated lives that face more than decisions about sleeping around or telling your family all about your life. Although you may have experienced the cute lover suddenly rushed to hospital in countless other rom-coms, producer Judd Apatow has made sure you will laugh as you enjoy his iconic comedies, now in a higher form than ever, and wax philosophical at the slings and arrows of love in different cultures.

I just loved this movie. Its billed as a comedy and I did laugh out loud frequently but it is also a touching drama of relationship and illness and the quintessential American story of the immigrant family's son and the white bread girlfriend. It had a very sweet touch, mixing the comedy and drama. Ray Romano was fantastic as the father of the girlfriend and I also really liked the girl, Zoe Kazan. Sorry, this isn't much of a review except to say that it was really very good!

A lot of recent reviews have slated this movie for not being funny, well, it's not a comedy or a romcom. It's a drama and a reasonably good one.

I did like how the cultural 'issues' were handled regarding a man of Pakistani heritage in America.

The production values are good, as is the acting. The script should have been a bit tighter but it did pack an emotional impact.

If you are looking for a comedy check out East Is East.

Went to see this with my wife and we both had the same impression - underwhelming particularly given the rave reviews this movie has received. At best, it was "cute" but it felt lightweight and as others have pointed out it was not particularly funny or romantic. I was disappointed in Kumail Nanjiani given how good his character (and portrayal) is in Silicon Valley. Here he came over as somewhat flat and in addition I found Zoe Kazan as Emily irritating. Not a horrible movie but kinda blah

'The Big Sick' is pure cinematic bliss. This Heartwarming True-Story is told in a Unadultrated, Simple & Emotionally Empowering way, that leaves you wanting for more.

'The Big Sick' is based on the real courtship of Kumail Nanjiani and his now-wife, Emily Gordon. Kumail's traditional Pakistani Muslim family is unhappy with his relationship with Emily, a White American. When Emily is waylaid by a mysterious illness, Kumail must take charge of the crisis with her parents, Beth and Terry, whom he barely knows.

'The Big Sick' is an overwhelming experience, that left me with a big smile on my face. Its beautiful love-story, with the backdrop of two diverse families, from two extreme ends of the world. Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon re-tell their heartwarming, albeit intense journey, with pure skill. The two successfully capture their real life experiences & nurture into a terrific cinematic experience. The Writing is top-notch & offers a realistic take on different religions, without ever taking sides. Such Writing deserves an Oscar Nomination. Michael Showalter's Direction is simplistic, yet wonderful. Cinematography & Editing are effectively done. Art & Costume Design are perfect.

Performance-Wise: Kumail Nanjiani is wonderfully restrained, delivering a performance driven by pure feeling. Zoe Kazan as Emily, is extraordinary. Although she gets limited screen time in comparison to the others, the actress leaves a solid mark. Ray Romano & Holly Hunter, as Emily's parents, are flawless. What Performers! Anupam Kher as Kumail's Father & Adeel Akhtar's as Kumail's brother, are excellent. Bo Burnham & Kurt Braunohler shine as Kumail's fellow stand-up mates. Others lend support.

On the whole, 'The Big Sick' is an Unmissable Gem. Two Big Thumbs Up!

Director Michael Showalter ("Hello My Name is Doris" - 2014) has found a terrific collaborative relationship with writer/star Kumail Nanjiani ("Silicon Valley") and writer/wife/actor Emily V. Gordon. Based (at least somewhat) on the real life romance of Kumail and Emily, a couple from different cultural backgrounds and traditions, this 'little film that could" garnered one of the biggest deals in Sundance Film Festival history. And, everything is right in this film, from the realistic writing, a storyline filled with plausible surprises, to the terrific casting of the honest Zoe Kazan "Emily," Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily's parents, Aidy Bryant (SNL), Bo Burnham ("Zack Stone is Gonna Be Famous") and Kurt Braunohler as Kumail's comedy buddies, to the equally great and ethnically packed cast featuring Anupam Kher ("Silver Lining Playbook"), Zenobia Sheriff, Adeel Akhtar ("The Dictator") and Shenaz Treasury as Kumail's lovable family, along with a slue of terrific female mates for Kumail to marry. David Alan Greir even appears for a few brief scenes as the comedy store MC. The feel of this film is right in line with "Little Miss Sunshine" and "The Way Way Back," leaving the audience with a feel good feeling at the films conclusion. Films like this, much like Melissa McCarthy's "Nobodies" TV show, are filling the screen with a great group of stand- up/comedy actors that help cement the production in reliability and truth. With the right PR and word-of-mouth, "The Big Sick" could be a big hit for all involved.

Halfway through this syrupy, heartwarming gushfest, Pakistani boyfriend wannabe tells an edgy 9/11 joke to the very white American father of his comatose love interest: "tragic, we lost 19 of our best men". Silence. There's enough of these gloriously awkward moments in "The Big Sick", to bring much needed levity to the very tired romcom Hollywood game.

Maybe because it's based on the pretty crazy life experiences of comedian Kumail Nanjiani, "The Big Sick" resonates better than most cookie cutter plots. Sure there's sparks, joy, conflict, and tears, but there's also religion, racism, and history. Best of all, there's great chemistry between the leads and the various convoluted familial web players.

Plus Holly Hunter. Yup, Holly Hunter is in this, and of course, she is fabulous. Almost steals the movie. Almost. In fact all the performances are great, including several juicy supporting roles.

Nothing can get in the way of Kumail and Emily's fabulous love story. Hilarious, charming, and sneaky smart.

This film depicts a couple's challenge in grappling with the cultural differences of their Pakistani and white American families in this portrayal of the protagonist's real-life relationship. Kumail Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan are wonderful in their respective performances as the couple that gradually weaves together an amazing story. Ray Romano and Holly Hunter are equally splendid as the parents of the girlfriend. In fact, there are no weak links in the cast.

It's a film that goes from being a diverting portrayal of the life of a stand-up comic to a romance story to an allegory on overcoming cultural barriers in the United States. The tonal shifts might seem extreme at first, but they gradually cement a powerful narrative that makes for a lot of laughs but also becomes bittersweet and endearing without resorting to a hint of sentimentality.

The film takes on a new form when the girlfriend is beset with a severe illness. From there, the comedy aspect gradually becomes something of a supporting part to a deeper character study and exploration of family and cultural pressures even in the face of unanticipated grave events. You will laugh, you will be close to tears and you might engage in your own introspection after watching this film. Brilliantly written and beautifully acted, this one is from the heart. Recommended to the highest degree.

I think that it can be safely said that pulling off a great, or even a good comedy takes a lot of talent and a lot of hard work because you not only have to appeal to a small base, but in order to make a successful film work, usually it has to be fairly accessible and you have to have strengths within the film to propel it along such as great comedic delivery by your actors as well as having a razor sharp script, or a least a script that knows how to both tell a good story and yet be very humorous in the meantime. There have been many great comedic films over the decades and some would probably fall into my own brand of comedy that I personally favour which would tend to be a bit drier, or have a least some kind of observational, or even neurotic, or self deprecating humour involved in it. Unfortunately a lot of the comedies today, or at least what is considered to be on everybody's radar, or considered "the next big thing" usually escapes me as today's sitcoms on television I can't stand and it leaves me missing the great comedic legends such as the television productions of Norman Lear in the 1970's such as All in the Family, Maude, Good Times and One Day at a Time. These were shows that knew how to tell a good story, were downright hilarious at times and also what I think was really fascinating was how those shows captured both the mood and events of the times that they were portraying. Such as political opinions, racial attitudes, poverty and the list goes on and on. I wish today's shows and movies too would learn, or take a page from these old shows and make a biting yet fascinating look at today's world and the events going on instead of just endless jokes involving profanity, scatological humour, or things involving, or around perversity. This new film, The Big Sick proves to be the new reigning champion in today's comedy film because it works so successfully on a number of different levels. It accomplishes the task of being a comedy because it is at times very funny and there were several laugh out loud moments during the film and also some small moments where I laughed inwardly and probably had a big smile on my face. The film kept the crude jokes and language to a minimum (yes, they are still there, but not thankfully the main goal of the movie) and instead it uses these very witty jokes alongside telling a story that when you come right down to it is a story of great depth and a truly insightful and yet honest look at modern relationships and just love in general. The film tells a good comedic story and has lots of laughs, but yet it also pulls off the tricky balancing act of adding drama and even some sadness into the mix with this comedy and yet it all feels so natural and like these events could be going on in our very own lives (probably with a few variables here, or there), but the film successfully allows us not just to laugh at these characters, but also allows us to empathize and feel their sadness, joy, grief and a whole gamut of emotions throughout the course of the film's running time. The film is based on a true story of it's main star Kumail Nanjiani and he also co-wrote the film with his wife, Emily V. Gordon and we cheer for these two during the course of the film and even if we have a sneaking suspicion of how it will all turn out, it still allows for plenty of moments of both laughs and sometimes coming close to tears as well. The Big Sick also commendably shows relationships and finally gets the message across to audiences that today people truly do take relationships too flippantly where there really sometimes does need to be some effort involved and when we as people engage in one night stands, or brief affairs, is that really love, or does it just end up hurting us and making us all the more vulnerable in the end? We as people need to evaluate our relationships and what we think about love and what it truly means to have a healthy and functioning relationship. As with anything worthwhile this can take work and a fair bit of effort, but I think most people can tell you that the end result is worth it. The acting by the main stars and supporting are amongst the best if not the best performances by an ensemble cast I have seen so far this year and the writing by Gordon and Nanjiani has depth, laughs, sadness and true heart to it that not only makes it a true winner as a comedy, but in a range of different categories and one of the most perspective and yet also effective looks on relationships and love to come out in awhile. Truly one of this year's best films.

one of the dumbest most poorly acted comedies I have ever seen! Unbelievable how many fake reviews this has garnered! I'm guessing the entire comedy circuit was asked to promote this film.

What a let down.

1/10

Charming and tender romantic comedy, based on the lead actor's story of meeting his wife-to-be, and struggling through her mystery illness which led to her being in a coma; not to mention a well-handled strand about cross-cultural issues. Not world-changing, but it's a well-handled and endearing take.

Pakistani-born actor and stand-up comedian Kumail Nanjiani has made a film about his own experiences dating a non-Pakistani girl. His family members didn't accept the fact that he loved his girlfriend, and kept on setting up dates with Pakistani girls, as is the custom in that country.

Instead of a drama about the consequences of these culture clashes, Nanjiani made a lighthearted film, following the classic screenplay structure of the romantic comedy. Boy meets girl, falls in love, has to overcome all kinds of setbacks and problems, is rejected by the girl, but keeps on trying, and ultimately succeeds in winning her love. Everything is so predictable that the jokes must be really good to make up for the unimaginative screenplay.

Unfortunately, they're not. I counted one really good joke (about 9/11) and a handful in the category 'not bad'. But overall, this movie lacks the wit and humour that you'd expect from a film that was praised at Sundance. The jokes are flat and the running gags, like the endless parade of Pakistani marriage candidates, are boring.

So, the film is predictable and not very funny. That wouldn't have mattered if Nanjiani had turned his own experiences in a really heartfelt drama about how in some immigrant communities traditional parents try to arrange marriages for their unwilling offspring. And how this can lead to devastating consequences, like parents disowning their children. In 'The Big Sick', this fact is presented in the offhand manner which of course is typical for comedies.

The theme of arranged marriages in immigrant communities made me think of the excellent German/Turkish movie about this subject, 'When we leave'. That film was like a punch in the stomach. 'The Big Sick' is like listening to someone trying in vain to be funny.

There is only one thing I really liked in this film: Holly Hunter's part as the mother of Nanjiani's love interest. The way she completely played everyone else off the screen, for example with a wonderful and completely unexpected outburst of grief-induced anger, was absolutely great.