Action comedy has cinematic violence, positive female lead.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
a lot
Consistently violent, though it's very cinematic and non-realistic -- even becoming supernatural at times. Martial arts-style combat. More brutal scenes include characters being strangled and headbutted. Guns. A character is drugged and kidnapped. Hot wax is used as a form of torture, and in one particularly violent fight, a character bites another.
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Kissing. Changing room nudity; bare bottoms. A character fills up condoms with white liquid, pretending it is semen, to plant on somebody they don't like. Sexual banter. Characters objectify others with lines such as "I totally would."
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Infrequent language includes "f--k," "s--t," "pr--k," and "bitch." Also the British swear word "wanker." Derogatory words are thrown around as insults at school, such as "slag" and "ho." A character is called a "geek" and another a "virgin" -- which are also intended as insults.
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A character uses perfume and mentions the brand (Marc Jacobs) by name. YouTube is mentioned a few times.
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
some
A character is seen smoking what appears to be a cannabis joint. They also secretly smoke out of a window. Two characters appear to be drinking alcohol together on a date.
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Sisters Ria and Lena's respective hobbies and career aspirations are not considered worthy enough by their parents and teachers. Ria, however, remains defiant in her wish to be a stuntwoman, despite outside apprehension. She is ambitious and is a fighter -- literally, on occasion. When she believes something is untoward about her future brother-in-law, she goes all out to uncover the truth, happy to break the law along the way, such as invading someone's privacy.
Diverse Representations
a lot
The movie has an empowering young British Pakistani Muslim woman as its central character and a diverse supporting cast. The film touches on culture, traditions, and religious practices. A character uses a lazy stereotype when they tell a young British Asian girl that she "looks like a doctor." An older British Pakistani Muslim couple are shown to be disapproving of their daughter's intended career choice, which plays into stereotypes.
Determination and perseverance are key to success, especially when others question your choices. The theme of sisterly love is explored. Courage and teamwork are also prevalent themes.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Polite Society is a British martial arts action comedy with an empowering young woman in its lead. Ria (Priya Kansara) is ambitious, with dreams of being a stuntwoman, even though her parents and teachers advise against it. She is a great role model but is flawed, breaking the law in her pursuit to save her sister, Lena (Ritu Arya), from getting married. The central characters are a British Pakistani Muslim family, with cultural and religious traditions explored, while a diverse, multicultural cast provides a true and positive reflection of London. The film is very violent, but in a distinctly cinematic and video game style. Though the violence veers from reality, there is weapon use, including guns, and characters bite and strangle one another. One character is drugged and kidnapped. A scene in a locker room sees several male bare behinds. A character is also seen filling up a condom with a liquid she is pretending to be semen, with the intention of planting them on an unsuspecting man to make it appear he has been cheating on his fiancée. The language is infrequent but strong, and includes "f--k," "s--t," and "bitch." A character appears to smoke cannabis, and there is occasional drinking but not to excess. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Very good film, amazing and feel good.... BUT not for age 12 children. Very sexually explicit and bad language. Went to see with my 2, 12 year olds... they were horrified and felt very uncomfortable. We had to leave half way through. I later watched the end which was very good.
POLITE SOCIETYtells the story of Ria (Priya Kansara), an aspiring stuntwoman hoping to make a name for herself on her YouTube channel. Her life is thrown upside down, however, when her greatest cheerleader, older sister Lena (Ritu Arya), meets a man. With a wedding on the horizon, Ria is convinced something untoward is happening and will do whatever it takes to uncover the truth, derail the wedding, and save her sister.
This British action comedy-drama is one of the rare instances where you go to see a film, wholeheartedly enjoy yourself, and then afterward appreciate that what you just witnessed was truly original. Polite Society transcends genres, as a character study at its core, but sat underneath the umbrella of an impressive martial arts flick. With evident inspiration from filmmakers such as Edgar Wright, there is something slick and accomplished about this impressive turn for Nida Manzoor, who also writes the screenplay. Coming out in the same period of time as Rye Lane, this is yet another vibrant, exciting film that represents modern London, and does with so aplomb. But the real noteworthy aspect here is the young Kansara, in what can only be described as a star-making turn. She has a fight and resilience to her demeanor, and yet all the while she remains just a teenager, someone for the audience to invest in and root for. Place her in the middle of a great, compelling story, and you truly are onto a winner.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the violence in Polite Society. How did it compare to what you've seen in other action movies? Did it have more or less impact?
What character strengths did Ria show? Would you describe her as a positive role model? What makes a good role model?
Talk about the relationship between Ria and her sister, Lena. How did they support each other? Do you have any siblings? If so, how do your relationships compare?
Talk about the strong language in the movie. Did it seem necessary or excessive? What did it contribute to the movie?
How was sex discussed in the film? Parents, talk to your teens about your own values regarding sex and relationships.
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Stefan Pape
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
