The Big Sick is famously misdiagnosed as a romantic comedy. There is way too much truth. With a healthy dose of unique social commentary and clever yarns mediating some heavy intercultural and interpersonal motifs, the film introduces comedic anecdotes as antidotes for a fairly dramatic film. And the results are bright and memorable.

We like stories. Maybe the authenticity of this one allows for more investment. But we think the likability of the characters transcends the validity of the material. Kumail (Nanjiani) is a practiced dry and brutally honest cultural comedian, sharing stories about cricket and customs of his native Pakistan. Emily (Kazan) is wit-matching and confident with an adorable persona.

Emily’s mom, Beth (Hunter), is forthright and spunky while Terry (Romano) is mellow and nonchalant. The evolving relationship between Beth and Kumail and Kumail and Terry as they unite over Emily’s health is both beautiful and anguishing. Kumail’s parents, Azmat (Kher) and Sharmeen (Shroff) humorously play the ideal cultural traditionalists looking after their son. The parents mold our characters and essentially the picture.

We only have a slight, but required, deduction for the unoriginal breakdown at the drive-thru. The Big Sick writes its prescriptions on 4.67 napkins out of 5.