Published by Mason Oldridge, 26 August 2024
CONTAINS SPOILERS!
Netflix’s new teen comedy film about four freshmen’s first week of high school lands just in time for the back to school season.
Incoming feels like a Gen Z version of cult classic Superbad, albeit less funny, as it similarly follows unpopular highschoolers attempting to improve their social status by attending a cool party. Benj is infatuated with his sister’s best friend, Koosh attempts to live up to his older brother’s reputation, Eddie despises his mother’s new boyfriend and Connor is trying to shed his new height-based nickname Foetus.
At the party, Benj makes good strides in attracting his crush Bailey, though later has to win her over when he succumbs to peer pressure and takes ketamine with other popular kids. Koosh uses his house’s surveillance to target a girl and forges an elaborate plan to fake getting locked in the spa with her. The scheme initially works until he dislocates his shoulder and has to come clean to get help. Meanwhile, Eddie and Connor don’t even get into the party as Koosh is only allowed one friend and instead steal Eddie’s mum’s boyfriends’ beloved car and inadvertently end up looking after a catatonic Katrina, the most popular girl at their school, after she mistakes them for her taxi. This proves to be a disaster filled night as Katrina binges junk food and has a toilet-related accident in the backseat, leading the horrified friends to clean up after her. In addition to all this, popular teacher Mr Studebaker attends the party, teaching the underage attendees alcohol-fuelled science lessons and ends up getting severely burned, having accidentally set himself on fire and getting electrocuted.
There are undoubtedly funny moments throughout the film, notably the gross-out events in the Tesla and a red raw Mr Studebaker on the Monday morning, though on the whole it feels a little underwhelming.
Despite this, if you can manage your expectations, Incoming is an easy-watching ninety-minuter.
6/10