‘Polite Society’ Riffs On Tropes To Create Fresh Fun

by Alexis Gentry · Published April 28, 2023 · Updated April 22, 2024

Priya Kansara stars as Ria Khan and Ritu Arya as her sister Lena in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Saima Khalid / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Polite Society plays on some of the most well-worn action cliches to deliver a fun, fresh story with lots of laughs.

Ria Khan (Priya Kansara) is a somewhat clueless teen who aspires to be a stuntwoman and lives with her family in London. Her sister Lena (Ritu Arya) is a former artist who has fallen into a depression, but still reluctantly helps Ria make YouTube videos of her stunt work. The two are close and Ria adores her sister, so when Lena falls for the wealthy Salim (Akshay Khanna) and her personality starts changing, Ria suspects a sinister plot.

She enlists the help of her equally clueless friends Alba (Ella Bruccoleri) and Clara (Seraphina Beh) to help her get to the bottom of what’s going on, free Lena from the clutches of Salim’s powerful mother Raheela (Nimra Bucha) and bring her back to her senses.

Ritu Arya stars as Lena and Akshay Khanna as Salim in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Parisa Taghizadeh / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Polite Society is a fun, tight little story that combines coming-of-age, action movie tropes, sibling bonding, and stylish visual flair. Think Scott Pilgrim vs the World meets Kill Bill meets Bridesmaids meets Get Out.

Ella Bruccoleri stars as Alba and Seraphina Beh as Clara in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Saima Khalid / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC. — Ella Bruccoleri stars as Alba and Seraphina Beh as Clara in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Saima Khalid / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

Kansara and Arya truly feel like sisters and their dynamic is at the heart of the story, which really works. You wonder if perhaps Ria is being too protective of her sister and inventing a more grand storyline because she doesn’t want to lose her best friend, or if there really is something sinister afoot with the ultra-rich family seemingly stealing Lena away.

Nimra Bucha stars as Raheela and Priya Kansara as Ria Khan in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Parisa Taghizadeh / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC. — Nimra Bucha stars as Raheela and Priya Kansara as Ria Khan in director Nida Manzoor’s POLITE SOCIETY, a Focus Features release. Credit: Parisa Taghizadeh / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC.

At just over an hour and 40 minutes, Polite Society doesn’t overstay its welcome and it doesn’t hit you over the head with phony female empowerment while having a cast of fantastic women in an action hero story normally reserved for men. As the movie says, tropes are tropes for a reason: they work.

While the movie might not be as flashy as the big blockbusters crowding the multiplexes, it’s a fun, funny mashup that brings something new to the table and riffs on the old action movie recipe.