Film is a glorious medium with a deep history and thousands of timeless pieces. However, it is also one that has largely been dominated by older, white men. We have thus been clamoring for emerging, diverse voices in cinema for ages. This year, we were blessed with BAFTA-winning director Nida Manzoor. After writing and directing the short film Lady Parts (which was subsequently turned into an acclaimed series), she made her feature film debut with Polite Society. In it, we follow a Muslim teenager named Ria (Priya Kansara) who dreams of being a stunt woman. She posts YouTube videos of her stunt training, idolizes a British stunt woman named Eunice Huthart (who we hilariously never see because she’s “off doing a Marvel”), and encourages her older, despondent sister, Lena (Ritu Arya). The chemistry between our two leads is endearing and heartfelt, whether they’re having fun filming Ria’s videos or arguing against their parents to let Lena become an artist. The conflict arises when Lena meets a handsome, single doctor named Salim Shah (Akshay Khanna). Ria is immediately disgusted by the rich playboy act Salim puts on and is certain he is too good to be true. As he and Lena prepare for marriage, her suspicions grow into conspiracy. Fearing for her sister, she has no choice but to try to break up the couple before the big day. Ria enlists the help of her two equally outlandish friends, Alba (Ella Bruccoleri) and Clara (Seraphina Beh) to help find dirt on Salim to expose his scam. 

Manzoor’s film is the perfect combination of comedic fantasy and martial arts absurdity. Her film takes place in an elevated plane where we have fist fights happen frequently and are treated as high-stakes arguments. This type of frenetic action style leads to some of the film’s campiest and funniest moments, like a fight between Ria and her school bully in the library that no one (not even the librarians) seem to be perturbed by. In this world, over-the-top fight sequences are the norm. It’s a hilarious homage to classic Kung-Fu comedies like Yuen Woo-ping’s Drunken Master (1978) and Leung Kar-yan’s My Hero (1990). The script is written in such a way that its imagined reality feels down-to-earth, which cleverly makes all of Ria’s interactions with the Shah family seem unbelievable and exaggerated. 

The cast that brings this smart script to life is also deserving of plaudits, as everyone from Priya Kansara to Akshay Khanna are an absolute delight. The show-stealer, however, has to be Nimra Bucha, who plays Salim’s mother Raheela Shah. Bucha, known for her most recent work on the Disney+ series Ms. Marvel, delivers all the looks of a nefarious overprotective mother with the perfect amount of snide confidence. 

The film does dip during its third act, as it gets a bit messy due to its awkward pacing and exposition. Thankfully, Manzoor still leans into what works: excellent fight choreography, a heightened realism mixed with absurdist comedy, and genuine chemistry between our leads. When all is said and done, it’s hard to not be charmed by this endlessly entertaining experience.

8/10