Some romantic comedies transcend the mundane and crawl into your heart and stay lodged in there forever. The Big Sick is one such movie. Hard to imagine how a "coma comedy" could work, but in the able hands of veteran comedy filmmakers Judd Apatow (Trainwreck, This Is 40) and Barry Mendel (Trainwreck, The Royal Tenebaums), director Michael Showalter (Hello My Name Is Doris), and actor/writer Kumail Nanjiani (Silicon Valley), the outcome is unforgettable, especially given that it's based on Nanjiani and his wife's near-fatal relationship.
The film tells the story of Pakistan-born aspiring comedian and Uber driver Kumail (Kumail Nanjiani) who hooks up with grad student Emily (Zoe Kazan) after one of his standup sets. However, what they thought would be just a casual one-night fling quickly develops into a promising relationship, even with the cultural complications of Kumail's traditional Muslim parents. The revolving dinner scenes of his parents trying to fix him up with a "proper" Muslim bride are hilarious. But when tragedy strikes Emily with a mystery illness and she ends up in a coma, 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 his own emotional tug-of-war between his family and his heart.
Miss Hunter and Mr. Romano are exceptional as the bickering couple, exposing their own marital issues while dealing with their daughter's medical condition and her "ethnic" ex-boyfriend. The chemistry between all three actors is fabulous and truly the centerpiece that defines this indie gem throughout.
The Big Sick will restore your confidence in smart filmmaking. Not to be missed.