The Big Sick tells the true story of comedian Kumail Nanjiani and his relationship with Emily Gordon who fall in love but struggle as their cultures clash and Emily contracts a mysterious illness. The Terminal follows Viktor, a man stranded in an airport terminal as his country collapses into civil war. Happy-Go-Lucky focuses on Poppy, an optimistic primary school teacher in London whose cheerful demeanor frustrates those around her.

1. FILM STUDIES
ASSIGNMENT 2
DRAMEDY
Rob Ryan

2. US INDIE: THE BIG SICK
Director: Michel Showalter
Produced By: Judd Apatow and Barry Mendel
Written by: Emily Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani
Cinematography: Brian Burgoyne
Composer: Michael Andrews
Production Company: FilmNation Entertainment
Distributor: Amazon Studios (US) Lionsgate (worldwide)
Budget: $5 Million
Box office: $55 Million

3. SYNOPSIS.
The Big Sick tells the true story of Pakistan-born comedian Kumail Nanjiani
and his relationship with Emily Gordon (Emily Gardner in the film) who fall in
love but struggle as their cultures clash. When Emily contracts a mysterious
illness, Kumail finds himself forced to face her feisty parents, his family's
expectations, and his true feelings.

4. PRODUCTION CONTEXTS
Indie film:
The Big Sick was produced by Judd Apatow through his production company Apatow
productions and even through his has collaborated with some well known faces in
Hollywood. E.g Seth Rogan, Will Ferrel and many other recognisable comedic actors The
Big Sick is one of his few produced films that he has produced independently with no
studio backing or involvement what so ever. Meaning he has complete creative control
with what he wanted. The film played in Sundance in January 2017 and gained such
overwhelming positive reception that it caused a bidding war between Netflix, Sony
Classics and Amazon Studios. Kumail wanted the film to be released theatrically which
eliminated Netflix from the bidding war because they do not release their content into
cinemas. The film was eventually picked up by Amazon studios for $12 million to
distribute in the US which is one of the largest deals in Sundance’s history. Amazon
studios is a division from the electronic, soft where and streaming company Amazon. This
particular part of Amazon is mainly focused on streaming TV shows and releasing films.
Mainly independent films. The screenplay for this film is written by Kumail Nanjiani and
his wife Emily Gordon and its loosely inspired by their real life relationship before their
marriage in 2007. According to Nanjiani, the idea to make a script about them was first
inspired by Judd Apatow when the two met while appearing in a 2012 episode of the You
Made It Weird podcast. The screenplay was then developed over the course of three years
and received extra funding from FilmNation Entertainment when Apatow and other
producers submitted the script to a variety of potential studios and was picked up by
FilmNation within 3 hours of submission with no strings attached. The film started
production in 11th May 2016

5. STARS
Kumail Nanjiani is a stand up comedian born in Pakistan well known for his roles in SNL and Key and
Peele along with other minor supporting roles in mainstream comedy films. He has gained a fan-base
in recent years before this film, maybe not in the standards of the Hollywood actor but enough to
where people would want to see him in a leading role in something. This gives that audience
obligation to go and support this film. Especially its an autobiographical film concerning his love life
and he’s playing himself. Fans would feel more obligated because they are given a chance to get a
glimpse of Kumail that they did not know before. They may want to get a glimpse of the man behind
all the stand up. Holly Hunter who plays Emily’s mother is probably the most popular in the cast line
up. Having won an Oscar in 1993 for The Piano and has been nominated 3 other times. She has been
working in the industry for 3 decades but she has been in a slight decline in recent years for not being
in anything noteworthy or anything good in quality so this film is seen as her comeback role for her
fanbase and for the people who would want to see her in top form again just like in the 90s and early
200s. Zoe Kazan who plays Emily is an actress who is more popular in the US indie movie scene then
anything but like Nanjiani and Hunter, her previous work has gained her an audience. She is well
known for writing and starring in Ruby Sparks in 2012 which was a success critically and has gained a
cult following ever since its release with praise of her writing and performance and it got her some
attention from audiences. Ray Romano is a comedian well known for Everybody Loves Raymond which
is a sitcom that has went on from 1996 and 2005 and the Ice Age film series which is a series that has
been going on for a decade. Just like Holly Hunter he has gained a fanbase that would love to see him
in a film again as his comeback role because he hasn’t been anything of not other than the Ice Age
series. The 2 roles of Emily’s parents in The Big Sick go hand in hand. They are both played by stars
with a fanbase who are looking for some kind of comeback whereas the main 2 actors have people in
that minority who want to see them in more films. Both actors minus Holly Hunter are known for
comedic roles and this film being classed as a comedy will give this more appeal for audiences who
prefer the genre to any other genre.

6. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL
ISSUES
One of the themes of The Big Sick is Nanjiani’s resistance to an arranged marriage. Which
is one of the main conflicts of the film. Kumail and Emily split up after Kumail lied about
his current position and how he has not told his family about Emily. Because Kumail is
born of Muslim decent he has to follow the rules of that particular religion. Every time he
visits his family his mother always has a Pakistani woman come over in the hopes that one
of them will steal his affections. The central conflicts of the film is not only hoping that
Emily will get better from her illness but Kumail will eventually have to tell his parents the
truth and how he has defied their religion. This will be hard for him as anyone in Islam
who has done that has ended up being kicked of the family tree in the process. With that
the film becomes a commentary on the flaws of the religion and how it ruins lives but
balances is that out with Kumail’s brother earlier on in the film talking about how
someone he new managed to eventually get on with the wife that his parents chose for
him. While the film does try to show that not everyone who follow’s this rule had lived an
unhappy life Kumail is in the minority of people who is rebelling against his religion as it
establishes that he has also not prayed for over a year, making his situation even worse
than it is. As well as being a romance film The Big Sick uses this story to talk about issues
such as how the religion of Islam isn’t 100% accessible to the western society (simply
because arranged marriages are an outdated concept) and how some people defy what
their parents preach all their lives and how they have to suffer the consequences because
of it. It’s a story that some people can relate to whether we are talking religion and
political beliefs because these are issues that are going on in society and some people
stand so close to their faith that they reject their own children simply because they don’t
agree with it. Not that its always the case but it is an issue big enough to address in film
form.

7. HOLLYWOOD FILM: THE
TERMINAL
Director: Steven Spielberg
Producers: Laurie MacDonald, Walter F Parks, Steven Speilberg.
Writers: Andrew Niccol, Sacha Gervasi
(story)
Sacha Gervasi, Jeff Nathinson, (screenplay)
Cinematographer: Janusz Kaminski
Composer: John Williams
Production Company: Parkes/MacDonald Productions, Amblin Entertainment
Distributor: Dreamworks Pictures.

8. SYNOPSIS
Victor Novarski reaches JFK airport from a politically unstable country.
Due to collapse of his government, his papers are no longer valid in
the airport, and hence he is forced to stay in the airport till the war
cools down. He makes the airport his home and develops a friendship
with the people who work there until he can leave.

9. PRODUCTION CONTEXTS
The Terminal is the third collaboration from Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks
who have had previous successes with Saving Private Ryan and Catch Me if You
Can. Spielberg and Hanks are considered to be national treasures in Hollywood
who have made millions internationally and have mass appeal. Simply because of
Spielberg of directing childhood favourites such as E.T, The Indiana Jones series
and Jurassic Park and has even made more mature material that more adult
audiences are aware of with that of Saving Private Ryan and many others.
Spielberg knows how to appeal to both markets and that is one of the reasons
why he is well regarded today as one of the best filmmakers today. In September
2003 Spielberg bought the rights to the story of Mehran Karimi Nasseri who was
an Iranian Refugee who lived in Terminal One of the Charles de Gaulle airport,
Paris from 1988 to 2006 when his refugee papers were stolen. While Nasseri
received thousand of dollars from Spielberg and the producers for buying the
rights to his story his name does not appear as an influence as to why it was
made in the first place. Because Spielberg could not find an actual airport that
would let him shoot for as long as it would require the actual airport set was
instead built around a massive hanger at the Palmdale Regional Airport and they
had followed construction procedures and had hired workers who have worked
on building actual terminals and airports for respective companies in order to
make it look more authentic. The set had built in commercial fast food
restaurants and other divisions such as Burger King, W.H Smith and Mrs Fields.
These brands where recruited by Dreamworks while others approached the

10. STARS
At this point in his carrier Tom Hanks is now a household name and is the
established leading man in Hollywood films and has gained a huge fanbase
for simply playing the likeable protagonist in a vast majority of his
filmography and has gained 2 academy awards for best actor in a leading
role. One for Philadelphia in 1992 and most infamous for is portrayal as
Forrest Gump in 1994. A film that still manages to tug people in the
heartstrings to this day. Because Hanks has universal appeal for being
likeable and still doing so to this day it shows that you can put his name on
a poster and people will automatically be drawn to that particular film and
because Hanks plays likable so well it kinda makes him perfect for the role
as this good person thrown into a bad situation and people will
automatically identify with him not just of the situation being something that
occasionally happens but simply because he is being portrayed through the
charisma of Hanks. It helps that his has a lot of range as an actor and isn’t
one note in his roles. Because of this he can pull of the accent of a
immigrant very well and even convince the viewer of the character he is
playing and can play dramatic and funny both in the same film. Catherine
Zeta- Jones co stars in this as a love interest for Viktor (Hanks) The

11. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL
ISSUES
The central conflict of the film is that Viktor is stateless and is without a country after his a civil war
has broken out in his home country while he was visiting America and he can no longer return home.
Because of this Viktor is stuck in a place that doesn't speak his language and at the start of the film it
is established that Viktor speaks very little English hence his lack of understanding on what is being
said to him and his overall situation at the start of the film. When Viktor eventually learns what is
going on in his country and what this means for him he knows that he has to adapt and he does this
by learning more English to break the language barrier. This leads to him making friends in The
Terminal who play supporting roles in the film. The language barrier issue comes into play later on
when Viktor is bought in by Frank the customs director for the airport (Stanley Tucci) to settle down a
Russian immigrant who goes berserk after he is informed that he can not bring his pills home to his
farther. Even though they are both from different countries Viktor is bought in to try and calm the man
down and help him understand. The scene ends when its revealed that the pills are not for his farther
but for the goat that the Russian owns in his farm making it ok for him to bring them over. Looking at
both these aspects I think one of the central issues and themes that the film brings up is how
disconnected we are from people in foreign countries simply because we are not familiar of the
language we speak and how that might lead into misunderstandings and things getting lost in
translation. If Viktor wasn’t their to help the Russian immigrant with his issue he would have been
arrested ( as established when the security officers tackle him to the ground ) or he would have gone
home without his meds that he desperately needs. Or without the help of Viktor’s friends who took the
time to understand him, he might have been all alone on in a place that’s pretty alien to him. This
goes to show that people (especially in a high authority) Should be talking the time to understand
foreigners instead of jumping to conclusions or leaving them be otherwise it might have negative
consequences on their lives. This isn’t the first film to deal with this sort of conflict that’s present
within the film. In 1993 a French film called Lost in Transit was released that has a synopsiss that was
similar. The Terminal came out in 2004, Lost in Transit came out 11 years prior, This shows that this
issue has been an ongoing thing that it has produced 2 films addressing the issue to make people
more aware with it. And people getting stuck at airports due to lost passports and immigration papers
is still going on to this day. Theses films are in some way a way to make some noise to governments

12. BRITISH FILM: HAPPY-GO-
LUCKY
Director: Mike Leigh
Writer: Mike Leigh
Producers: Simon Channing Williams,
Cinematography: Dick Pope
Composer: Gary Yershon
Production Company: Film4, Ingenious Film Partners, UK Film Councel
Distributor: Momentum Pictures

13. SYNOPSIS
Happy-Go-Lucky is A look at a few chapters in the life of Poppy, a
cheery, colorful, North London schoolteacher whose optimism tends
to exasperate those around her.

14. PRODUCTION CONTEXTS
The film was funded with help from the National Lottery who funded the UK Film
Council with £1.2 million and funded £210,000 awarded to Momentum Pictures
for distribution. During production of the driving lessons scenes 5 miniature
cameras where placed on different sections of the car in order to cut back on
using a camera car to either follow them or film the senses from a distance.
Sometimes director Mike Leigh hid on the floor behind to 2 seats in order to give
the actors instructions on how the sense should flow and while the actors had to
stick to the narrative a lot of the dialogue was improvised so the actors where
required to improvise the scene in character while focusing on the driving.
Because Leigh likes to work with actors individually before filming in order to
help get into their characters, Eddie Marsden who plays Scott a mentally unstable
and racist/misogynistic driving instructor thought he was preparing for a serious
drama and wasn’t fully aware of the comedic nature of the film. Before its UK
release the film played at Berlin International Film Festival as well as the Dublin
Film Festival which the positive buzz made the public more aware of it and it
allowed the film to then play at Telluride and Toronto film festival after along
with many others in order to gain distribution in other countries. Much like The
Big Sick this had to play at film festivals in order to gain promotion and
distribution. The only difference is is that The Big Sick was released after it was
shown in festivals whereas Happy-Go-Lucky was still on the festival circuit even
after it had it’s run in the UK. Unlike The Terminal and The Big Sick to a certain
extent which both gained from funding from a big Hollywood studio or a well

15. STARS
Sally Hawkins has had several supporting roles at this point in her
carrier in a lot of british films and TV shows at this point in her
carriers o while she might have gained some recognition from a few
things she hasn’t gained much attention outside of the UK and isn’t a
but she has collaborated with director Leigh before in Vera Drake in
2004 along with Eddie Marsden who stars as Scott. Marsden has
appeared in a few more international films then Hawkins such as
Martin Scorsese’s Gangs of New York in 2004 and 21 Grams which
was directed by world renowned Mexican filmmaker Alejandro
González Iñárritu so he is more likely to gain more of an audience of
people who recognise his talent and his previous performances.
Unlike the previous 2 films these are actors that have more appeal in
the Uk than they do internationally which will help this film get
promoted in the UK when it gets realeased but because this is also an
independent film they have to screen the film in festivals in order to

16. THEMES
For the first half of the film we as an audience are forced to go along with Poppy’s antics just so we
can fully understand the type of person she is. She’s kind, good natured, optimistic, cheerful albeit a
little irritating but at the end of the day she’s a responsible adult with a job and she’s got her life
figured out. Her qualities as a person eventually contrast when she meet’s her driving instructor
named Scott and this part of the film plays as a test for Poppy’s benevolence. Scott is a man with
anger issues and is also very obsessive along with sings of racism and misogyny and Poppy’s attempts
to make the lessons more upbeat make him angrier but Poppy still remains wise and calm and
somewhat sympathetic. For example when Scott has one of his outbursts or racism and rant about
multiculturalism, Poppy after a long silence asks if he was bullied at school. Theses scenes work as a
endurance test for Poppy’s kindness and positivity and both characters eventually bring out the worst
aspects of them, With Poppy being ignorant during lessons and may cause other people including
Scott to be annoyed by her but Scott eventually get sick of it and has a violent outburst at Poppy
before he reveals that he had romantic feelings for her and accuses her of seducing him. They decide
that they should part way’s after Poppy is unable to reason with Scott and learns the sad truth that she
is unable to help him. it’s Scott who is the one who is irresponsible and Poppy’s happiness is from
what she believes and it’s not out of ignorance or naive or forced. It is clear that the message of the
film is that education and socialising is important for one person’s growth. It is clear that Scott
throughout his life hasn’t been well socialised and treated well throughout his life and because of this
he is reduced to a heartless wreck and doesn't listen. It is clear how ever that Poppy has been and
does listen. Despite her flaws she has been well educated and is now the person she is. Poppy earlier
on in the film found out that her student was being violent to other class members because he was
being abused by his stepdad at home. If Poppy had not intervened this boy may have become another
Scott but unfortunately it is clear Scott never had that help in his childhood and because of this Poppy
is unable to reason with him and it’s too late for him. If teachers and parents are not responsible
enough then we will get sad and lost people like Scott who resort to anger and hate in unesacary ways.
Poppy may be flawed but she is undoubtedly a good person because on how she was raised.