I was pleasantly surprised with The Big Sick, directed by Michael Showalter and here’s why: I wrongly assumed it would hammer political ideology, of which I’m simply fatigued. But instead, Emily V. Gordon and her husband, comedian Kumail Nanjiani have presented a human story which was sweet and moving.
What helped the movie, besides a smart and funny screenplay, were the outstanding supporting actors (and by actors I mean male and female).
Ray Romano, the Tom Hanks of comedy, is such a solid dude no matter what he does. In fact, I’m sure he probably improved some of the dialogue as you can sense his wholesome sense of humor bleeding through the story, which was great! I miss this guy, Rob the Mob from 2014 was underrated though from the looks of his IMDB page, he’s been around the t.v. world. Next up is a series called Get Shorty on Epix (8/13/17).
I also love Holly Hunter, her petite, but spit fire nature shining as the momma protecting her adult child. Like Romano, you know she’s dependable and impressive. An IMDB search shows she has a new sci fi’ish show (can’t deal), but I will seek out a movie from this year called Breakable You, that also stars Al Molina (another favorite of mine).
Zoe Kazan, who I loved in Ruby Sparks was excellent as well. I actually didn’t want to like her for a very deeply embedded territorial feeling that Kumail’s own wife should be playing the role (since it’s based on their story). But Zoe was so good that I felt totally pacified and ridiculous for this sentiment. Looking at what I may have missed of Zoe’s, Our Brand is Crisis is something I bypassed originally, but being a Billy Bob fan, should round the bases and watch.
So healthy vibes from The Big Sick, definitely worth the price of admission. An excellent night out and some good movies on the horizon.
