Following numerous acclaim from the Sundance Film Festival in January 2017, "The Big Sick" was shaping up to become the indie darling of the summer. For the last ten years, there have always been a few of those indie gems that manage to ride on the radars of people who have an awe for the art of filmmaking, with standouts including "Captain Fantastic, "The End of the Tour," and "Moonrise Kingdom." After on-and-off vibes towards the blockbusters, there was a lot surrounding the latest feature from director Michael Showalter. Based on the real-life romance of Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, the film's screenwriters, "The Big Sick" explores an interracial couple (Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan) in a way that feels as grounded and subtle as any that has been depicted on screen. At times, the film steers away by making it feel original, even though it is an autobiographical tale of finding ways to follow your own path.

The reception of "The Big Sick" is well-deserved and it stands as a top-ten contender for me, which is a position I hope it continues to hold until the end of the year. The screenplay by Nanjiani and Gordon is rich and endearing, as it steers away from the cliched aspects seen in a majority of romantic comedies. With the characters having depth and realism to them, everything comes to a natural flow and the dialogue follows a similar path. Kumail and Emily are based on real-life people and they just happen to be two of the year’s well-written characters, which is something that cannot be said about most films that are based on true stories. Nanjiani and Kazan’s chemistry is as charming as it looks to be and reminds me of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel’s in "(500) Days of Summer," as well as Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl’s in "Knocked Up."

Not only does "The Big Sick" have outstanding performances from Nanjiani and Kazan, but Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily’s parents have strong chances of being nominated come award season. There is strong comedy thrown throughout the film and Romano is the stand-out. I have considered him underrated in the dramatic department, as he had a remarkable presence on "Parenthood" and it’s incredible to see how far he has come as an actor since "Everybody Loves Raymond" wrapped up in 2005. It is also terrific to see the overlooked comedian Bo Burnham receive some film work. Without question, "The Big Sick" will, without question, receive a Screen Actors Guild nomination towards the phenomenal cast.

I've never been familiar with Showalter’s work as a director, while I’ve only been exposed to his written work: whether it’d be "Wet Hot American Summer" or "They Came Together." The awe and realism placed in his direction for "The Big Sick" is nothing short of remarkable and this makes me want to check out the rest of his directorial efforts. Showalter is no stranger to comedy, but I was very surprised with how strong of a job he did handling the dramatic scenes in this film. Without any in-your-face moments and forced tripes, the team-up of Showalter’s direction and the screenplay of Nanjiani and Gordon, it makes "The Big Sick" feel as unique as any romantic comedy in recent memory.

As much as I was engrossed and entertained by this film, I did not see any purpose in "The Big Sick" having a two-hour running time and when you feel the running time of any film, sometimes it can be tiresome. I have never been fond of any comedy having a running time of more than 100 minutes, unless it flows well with the story. While I admired the story occurring in "The Big Sick," I did not need it to be more than 95 minutes at most. The two-hour running time generally works for any of the blockbusters or historical epics, with there have plenty of romance stories that run longer than two hours. The film would have been a perfect masterpiece if it had a running time in that range, but regardless, that is my only flaw with this future classic in the romantic comedy genre.

It is very rare for films that premiere at Sundance to continue having strong buzz toward the Oscars after the festival and there have been a few exceptions, such as "Little Miss Sunshine," "Boyhood," and "Manchester by the Sea" (all three of which were nominees for the Best Picture Oscar). I certainly hope "The Big Sick" follows that path and gains plenty of award nominations, especially with the Oscars. As a game changer to the romantic comedy realm, this stands out as one that fans and non-fans of the genre should give a viewing to. Despite having a Judd Apatow-running time, who is one of the film’s producers, this is one of the best romantic stories of the decade thus far. With an nuanced leading performance from Kumail Nanjiani and a fantastic screenplay, "The Big Sick" is one of the films that’ll stick with you upon first viewing and it’ll make you have a huge understanding towards arrange marriages, struggling comedians and how one person can make a bigger impact on your life more than realized.