The Big Sick isn't about the "falling in love" part. The movie details a period in the early part of their relationship when Gordon's health declined for seemingly no reason. In fact, Gordon's not sure if The Big Sick would be called a "romantic comedy," per se, although she admits that she'll accept the title. (Her favorite rom com is Say Anything, for the record, although she doesn't believe Lloyd and Diane will have a lasting relationship.) For a large chunk of the movie, the female protagonist (called Emily Gardener in the film, played by Zoe Kazan) is in a medically induced coma. Nanjiani then has to hang out with his girlfriend's parents at the hospital. In this particular romantic comedy, it's boy meets girl. Boy woos girl. Then, boy woos parents, figures that are usually anathema to the whooshing, swooping love of this genre. The parents push the movie into more realistic territory; after all, lovers don't exist in a vacuum.