Fantastic Film Fest 2023 Review Review - Polite Society
Images courtesy of Fantastic Film Festival.
Nida Manzoor’s debut feature film Polite Society was chosen to open up Fantastic Film Festival Australia 2023, and created the perfect atmosphere of weird and wonderful. It’s bursting at the seams with charm, pulling off a remarkable act by taking traditional genres and conventions, and making them feel brand new again.
Whilst comparisons have understandably been drawn to the works of major directors such as the Daniels and Edgar Wright (namely Scott Pilgrim vs The World), Manzoor has created a film that stands alone in all its bold irreverence. Centering around the stunt work-obsessed Ria Khan (played by Priya Kansara) trying to save her sister from what she deems to be a sham engagement, Polite Society weaves the familiar action-comedy genres together in a way that feels entirely fresh.
A major standout of this film is its protagonist. Ria is brazen, clever, and hilarious — the perfect character to bolster such a huge, unconventional story. But she is also given the grace (that teenage girls so rarely are allowed) to be awkward, brash, and foolish without ever losing her charm. Priya Kansara delivers a performance that feels warm and relatable, despite all the wildly unusual situations the film puts Ria in.
Despite action being the driving genre of Polite Society, the film never loses its ability to craft meaningful moments amongst all the pitch perfect fight scenes. Ria and her sister Lena’s (Ritu Arya) relationship is the beating heart of the film, which also gently touches on generational trauma and the harm caused by societal expectations, whilst still maintaining the throughline of sisterhood.
Manzoor’s attention to detail is what makes this film feel polished. The clever use of music to set the tone of each fight scene, the refreshingly believable way the teenagers in the film talk and behave, and the commitment to its own absurdity and subversion of expectations are just a handful of elements that make Polite Society feel like tight filmmaking. Every fragment of this movie feels considered, with even the strangest of plot twists and quirkiest of jokes feeling like they stick the landing due to the sheer amount of passion Manzoor has poured into the film.
Where weirdness can often lose out in action films, the chaos, vibrancy, and fast-pace of Polite Society breathes new life into the genre, and serves as an excellent tone setter for what the rest of FFFA 2023 has to offer.
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Polite Society screened at the 2023 Fantastic Film Festival Australia, running 14th to 30th April. Check out the festival website for tickets and more info here.