[Just a clip from the film, because the official Trailer gives away too much]
I want to be careful not to classify this as an Indian film because I believe it comes from Pakistani filmmakers. Still it is set in London, so it is in English and takes place for the most part in a western environment. This movie caught me completely off guard, I really had no idea what it was about, I just know that Amanda and I had talked about seeing it a year or two ago and we never got around to it.
The fact that it was playing at the Paramount for the Summer Classic Movie Series was just serendipity. As it turns out the movie is largely a martial arts fantasy featuring two sisters of Pakistani heritage, struggling to find their place in the world, and not getting much assistance from anybody else. I was a little worried at first that I would not be able to distinguish the two actresses because they have similar appearances, but that thought disappeared after just a couple of minutes. Both actresses are young and quite lively and lovely.
Although it is a martial arts film it did remind me a little bit of “Bend It Like Beckham", where a girl who is an outsider because of her heritage, struggles with friendships with her Western counterparts.” Polite Society” however goes over the top in creating what is almost a James Bond type of Adventure, based on some strange motivations that when they are revealed are quite hysterical. The performances at first are deliberately exaggerated, but the writers and the director clearly have an affinity for the characters, in particular our lead actress Priya Kansara. She plays Ria, a high school student who wants to be a stunt woman, that's her goal in life and nobody seems to feel like she's really thinking very practically. Ria does get reluctant support from her sister Lena played by Ritu Arya, but her sister has her own problems.
There's a lot of cross-cultural humor, particularly in regard to the courtship of the older sister and a handsome biomedical researcher from a wealthy family. The passions of the younger sister can simply not be contained and they spill over in a lot of hilarious ways. Frequently her frustration is manifested by her attempts to engage in some of the acrobatic martial arts practice by her stunt woman idol.
There's plenty of music in the film, a mix of Rock and more traditional Eastern Tunes. There are needle drops for everybody. There's also some clever camera work and the cinematography which does a nice job conveying different locations and moods. The music and cinematography are hilariously used to create a mood around the potential villain of the piece. If you see the film you'll know what I'm talking about. It's the filmmaking style that creates a caricature of the preening and domineering woman who may be a threat.
There's also a dance number, that I know is not a Bollywood Style, but the mood that it sets is very similar to those that you might have seen in a movie Made in India, although the music and the dance are certainly not repetitive of those Indian styles.
The story takes a couple of interesting turns, and just when you're set to believe that we're looking at some woman's fantasy and overreaction, her paranoia is revealed to be justified. The conflict between creating Trust with her family, after the way she has been behaving, creates a lot of the humor in the last part of the film. Ultimately however the movie is familial friendly.
I laughed on a regular basis, prizes that came with this creative variation of a romantic comedy mashed up with a James Bond Thriller. “The gods whispered to the warrior, 'You will not withstand the fury.' The warrior whispers back, 'I am the fury!' Have fun.
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