Sunday, July 7, 2024

Polite Society (2023)

 Anglo-Pakistani sisters Ria (Priya Kansara) and Lena (Ritu Arya) are close, Lena wants to be an artist while Ria hopes to be a stunt woman. When a discouraged Lena falls for and gets engaged to handsome and successful geneticist Salim (Akshay Khanna), who wants to move her with him to Singapore, Ria trys everything she can think of to break the couple apart. It is not until she has seemingly resigned herself to the situation that Ria discovers that Salim and his mother Raheela (Nimra Bucha) have a nefarious secret purpose for the match. Ria and her schoolmates team up to rescue Lena and expose the sinister plot into which she has fallen, if Ria can use her stunt skills in so doing so much the better.

There is some Tarantino here, some 'Everything, Everywhere, All at Once' and some 'Scooby-Doo', among other things. The story is okay and the relationship between the sisters really works, as does the films multiculturalism and eclectic soundtrack. Despite some genuine creativity and talent the film can't quite transcend being a pastich of its influences. A worthy effort but still **1/2

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