Incoming (2024)

Now, usually I’m a fan of comedies, especially when it comes to teen comedies like Superbad, Mean Girls, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and The Breakfast Club. Recently, I got to watch one that arrived on Netflix called Incoming and I must say, I wasn’t all that impressed. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m all for raunchiness when it comes to humor but in a movie like this, it didn’t really get to me. But first, let’s talk about the cast. There were some actors who I felt did a pretty decent job, like Mason Thames as Benj and Isabella Ferreira as Bailey. I actually thought they had chemistry. I also liked Bobby Cannavale as Mr. Studebaker, a teacher who basically makes the worst decisions possible. The friends were pretty good, too. I felt like I was actually watching a group of friends interact with each other (not something I would know much about) but aside from that, most of the acting wasn’t all that good. There are quite a number of thoughts I have on this movie, so let’s dive right into those.

     The movie tells the story of four freshmen boys who go through the horrors of their teenage years at their first high school party. Now, I will commend the movie for this. Most of the characters actually look like teenagers. I mean, I’m alright with older people playing high schoolers every now and then, but sometimes I feel like that reaches a certain point where it gets ridiculous, so I liked seeing that. But unfortunately, I have more negatives than positives about this movie. First off, as I mentioned before, I always enjoy a good raunchy comedy but I felt like the jokes didn’t really land most of the time. I did get a few laughs in throughout the film but they weren’t enough. As for the story, it felt like something I’ve seen a thousand times before; a nerdy kid who falls for a good looking older kid and the side characters who have an adventure of their own and land in outrageous situations. Yeah, talk about by the numbers because the jokes didn’t feel all that original and these parts were pretty bland and forgettable. Also, I’m not sure I’d call this a positive thing or not but the movie did remind me of how shy and socially awkward I was in high school. Okay, that might actually be more negative than positive but at least I could relate to that a bit. And, that’s fine because there really wasn’t much else I gained from this experience.

     Maybe I’m judging this movie a little too harshly. I’m sure there’s a lot of people who will watch this movie and see nothing more than a fun dumb movie that tries to entertain you and nothing more. And, that’s fine. I just wish it could have been more original instead of giving me the same formula from other movies that did it better. I couldn’t see myself watching this movie a second time but if you’re not someone like me who takes things way too seriously, then I guess I would say that this is the movie you could watch if there’s nothing else on tv and if you’re looking for a few laughs. For that, I give this movie a 5 out of 10. I may not have enjoyed this movie that much but don’t take the word of this aspie film critic who appreciates actual genius and ideas that are both fresh and new. Just watch the movie for yourself and you decide how you feel.