Polite Society tells the story of two Pakistani-Muslim sisters in London; plucky Ria (Priya Kansara), who dreams of being a stuntwoman, and Lena (Ritu Arya), her world-weary older sister who wants to be an artist. With Lena recently returned home after dropping out of art school, Ria constantly goads her into helping her make YouTube videos to showcase her stunt skills, much to the chagrin of their uber-traditional parents (Shobu Kapoor and Jeff Mirza).
However, things take a sharp turn when Lena accepts a date with the handsome, wealthy doctor Salim (Akshay Khanna). The two get along smoothly and, at a hilariously accelerated rate, an arranged marriage is planned by the larger-than-life matriarch Raheela (Nimra Bucha), much to Ria’s dismay. Ria has a new goal: destroy Lena’s relationship. But it’s going to take a lot more than fancy stuntwork and martial arts to stop this wedding.
Polite Society has a commercially sound premise that promises a ton of fun. A woman trying to stop her sister’s marriage with sharp genre turns into martial arts, capers, romantic comedy, family drama and even science-fiction. While the film may be less than the sum of its parts, it satisfies well enough to entertain the masses, as well as provide believable human drama that transcends over its own insistence and silliness.
Writer/director Nida Manzoor makes it abundantly clear that the film makes no attempt to adhere to realism, shooting for the stars as she tries to combine various genres into one extravaganza, with nods to Westerns, martial arts, heist films, Bollywood musicals, action flicks, and more. Stylistic editing choices – including an abundance of slow-motion and chapter titles, referencing song and film titles like the South Korean horror film A Tale of Two Sisters – and plot points such as arranged marriages and a particularly hilarious scene with characters cross-dressing numerous times all add to the genre-blending fun. While it is unfair to expect expertise in all genre attempts (the fight scenes in particularly are not especially stimulating or well-staged), the film attempts them all in the scope of comedy, and does so well.
All this makes the inherent silliness and pantomime performances palatable and watchable, with all the performers keeping up with the pace. Nimra Bucha in particular vamps it up to a glorious degree and chews the scenery like her life depended on it. However, without going into the spoilers, the third act reveal may be the breaking point for some, as the tone shifts from family melodrama to horror as social commentary. The pathos inherent to said horror is not really well-earned and might turn off a few viewers as a result, only touching briefly on the issue and not delving deeply enough.
Similarly, the humour of the film doesn’t always hit the mark. As much as the film tries to subvert genres to entertaining effect, Manzoor does leave things underdeveloped – Ria’s best friends played by Seraphina Beh and Ella Bruccoleri are mildly amusing at best – and the pacing feels haphazard, with all the genres and ideas the film attempts to juggle.
Despite the film’s flaws, the bond between Ria and Lena is Polite Society’s biggest asset. Even with all the fantastical elements, Manzoor never sugar-coats the predicaments the sisters face, and Kansara’s overactive yet agreeable charisma and Arya’s grounded and emotionally guarded presence make for a believable – and even lovable – duo.
Overall, Polite Society is a scrappy yet eager-to-please piece of work. While it suffers through some tired jokes and inconsistent pacing, the film has enough charm and spirited fun to be a big crowdpleaser.
THREE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Polite Society is playing as part of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, taking place between January 19th and 29th, 2023, both in person and online. For more information head to the official Sundance page.
