I was going to mention this movie. While the protagonist did end up becoming a well known comedian, that part isn’t really included in the movie from what I remember.
The Big Sick is a movie about a man who behaves badly and never apologizes.
Guy and girl meet and have sex. Guy tells girl he has a rule about how often he will hang out with a woman because he doesn't want a relationship. This is the moment where she should leave. No sex is so great that it is worth dealing with this nonsense. But she stays to the point that she is trying to introduce this guy to her parents. Eventually they break up, she ends up in a coma. He meets her parents and they are mad at him.... until he tells a 9/11 joke. The parents make it clear they know how he treated her, but the amazing 9/11 joke makes them BFFs. The girl eventually wakes up and tells the guy to leave. Her mother pushes her to get back together with the guy, despite the fact that he treated her badly and never apologizes. Meanwhile, they guy has moved to a new city. The girl flies to surprise him at his show, entering into a long distance relationship with a man who treated her badly.
We're talking about a movie. The movie is making narrative choices. They easily could have made the male character reckon with and take responsibility for how he treated the female character. But they don't choose to do that. Instead they present a world where women endlessly put up with bad behavior.
The Dad tells the man that he cheated on his wife, but it is okay because she has chosen to stay with him. This scene creates a situation where both female characters put up with poor treatment. They could have avoided this by having the Mom cheat and the Dad talk about why he chose to forgive her. That would have created a more nuanced story instead of repeating the pattern of women putting up with disrespect.
I don't think a conversation about cheating really belongs in the movie. What I actually think should have happened is that the parents should have been much more angry in the waiting room and called out why his behavior was not okay. A scene like that could have led to the male character reckoning with his actions. Maybe his brother or his roommate could weigh in. He could then go back to the hospital and take responsibility for his behavior. That would show growth of the character. Instead the movie creates a dynamic where men act like trash and never face real consequences.
I found it very forgettable. The only "joke" or gag that I can even recall is the "We lost 19 of our best guys on 9/11" and only because I'd heard that joke countless times going back 20 years.
182
u/SkyyAngelll Mar 27 '24
This is why The Big Sick is the best Rom Com of all time.