The Big Sick

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1hr 59mins // directed by:Michael Showalter // featuring:Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Holly Hunter, Ray Romano // CC, AD, Assisted Listening

Based on the real-life courtship between Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, The Big Sick tells the story of Pakistan-born aspiring comedian Kumail (Nanjiani), who connects with grad student Emily (Zoe Kazan) after one of his standup sets.

However, what they thought would be just a one-night stand blossoms into the real thing, which complicates the life that is expected of Kumail by his traditional Muslim parents.

When Emily is beset with a mystery illness, it forces Kumail to navigate the medical crisis with her parents, Beth and Terry (Holly Hunter and Ray Romano) who he's never met, while dealing with the emotional tug-of-war between his family and his heart.  

New York Times Critic's Pick "Few filmmakers know how to fit contemporary men and women, straight or gay, into narrative forms that were developed once upon a time. In “The Big Sick,” Mr. Nanjiani and Ms. Gordon vault over that hurdle with openness and delight, revitalizing an often moribund subgenre with a true story of love, death and the everyday comedy of being a 21st-century American." — Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

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"Two people who are currently happily married writing a romantic comedy about how they fell in love sounds like it could be a recipe for smug treacle, the movie equivalent of an overcurated Instagram feed. But Michael Showalter’s wise and tender The Big Sick, scripted by Silicon Valley’s Kumail Nanjiani and his wife and fellow comedy writer Emily Gordon, sidesteps that danger almost completely." — Dana Stevens, Slate

FULL REVIEW