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‘Polite Society,’ Toying With Genre, Subverts Clichés of the Asian Immigrant Experience

While it doesn’t go for broke like ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once,’ the film is worthy of the comparison.

Parisa Taghizadeh /Focus Features
Priya Kansara stars as Ria Khan in Nida Manzoor’s film 'Polite Society.' Parisa Taghizadeh /Focus Features
MARTIN TSAI
MARTIN TSAI

While “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is one of most original films in recent memory, this year’s Sundance entry “Polite Society” bears a surprising number of similarities to the newly anointed Oscar Best Picture. 

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MARTIN TSAI
MARTIN TSAI

Mr. Tsai is a film critic with bylines in The New York Sun, Los Angeles Times, and many others. He holds a master's in Cinema Studies from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

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