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INCOMING (2024)

"An Unethical Disaster of Epic Proportions"

Content: -4 Intentional blasphemy, evil, gross immorality, and/or worldview problems. (To be avoided)
Entertainment Quality:
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Language
Violence
Sex
Nudity

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What You Need To Know:

INCOMING is an R-rated Netflix teen comedy movie. about four fresh-faced ninth graders who are trying to impress their upperclassmen. One night, the four boys crash their first after-school party with beer, drugs, and debauchery. Benji attempts to ask out the girl of his dreams. However, the party drags him and his closest friends into a downward moral spiral. Will the boys be able to escape the party unscathed? INCOMING is written and directed by Dave and John Chernin, who worked on IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA.

INCOMING is an epic failure on both a spiritual and artistic level. The movie has competent cinematography and good acting. However, it suffers from unlikeable characters, lackluster “shock” humor, and an unsatisfying ending. Moreover, it features a hedonistic worldview promoting drug use, constant swearing, and a brief male-on-male sex scene. The story veers into a "teenage apocalypse" during the party scenes. The comedy is subpar even if you stripped the movie of all its R-rated material. As a result, MOVIEGUIDE® strongly urges older audiences to avoid this “fentanyl” stench of a movie.

Content:

(PCPCPC, HHH, LLL, VVV, SSS, NN, HoHoHo, AAA, DDD, MMM):

Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:
A strong hedonistic worldview that defies human decency, teenagers engage in heavy drinking and damaging personal property, a girl gets drunk and defecates on the seat of a Tesla vehicle, two ex-girlfriends openly discuss their shallow lesbian relationship, a school teacher joins a party against his better judgment, the main characters discuss stalking and pining after their school crushes, every character consumes some form of drugs, the main character humiliates himself in front of a school rally, and two boys transport a drunk girl to back to her home (the only redeeming element in this story);

Foul Language:
Strong foul language throughout, at least 200 uses of the “F” word;

Violence:
Strong violence throughout, a boy slips on a wet floor and dislocates his bones, the same boy has “physical abuse” marks left by his older brother, a fist fight between two gangs breaks out, a boy is kicked by the teeth, a man is shown to have bruised knuckles, a girl has her nose bruised, a girl hits a gang member at the party, and a drunken boy uses a self-defense electric rod on gang members;

Sex:
Two men briefly perform anal sex in a closet (no genitalia is shown), a boy does a massage routine on a girl’s back, two teenage girls kiss on screen, the girl openly mentions breaking up with her lesbian girlfriend, and “sexual acts” are frequently mentioned in regular dialogue;

Nudity:
A teenage girl’s blouse accidentally reveals her left nipple to a boy, and two freshmen boys take off their shirts during a “gross out” scene;

Alcohol Use:
Every teenage character engages in heavy underage drinking, a teacher takes a shot of wine at a party, and a drunken teenage girl passes out in a drunken stupor;

Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:
Characters smoke cigarettes, a dozen teenagers consume various illegal drugs, one boy snorts ketamine, various characters are shown “high” on drugs, fentanyl is mentioned in dialogue, a chemistry teacher cooks his own version of meth in front of his students, and a main character’s brother arranges a drug sale with gang members; and,

Miscellaneous Immorality:
A boy tells his step-father to “go f--k yourself,” another boy traps himself and his temporary girlfriend in his basement under false pretenses, three teenage girls openly urinate on a neighbor’s property, a chemistry teacher lights himself on fire, and two ninth graders drive a Tesla car into oncoming traffic (the boys avoid multiple possible collisions).

More Detail:

INCOMING is an R-rated Netflix teen comedy movie about four fresh-faced ninth graders who try to impress their upperclassmen. One night, the four boys crash their first after-school party with beer, drugs, and debauchery. Benji attempts to ask out the girl of his dreams. However, the party drags him and his closest friends into a downward moral spiral. Will the boys be able to escape the party unscathed? INCOMING is written and directed by Dave and John Chernin, who worked on IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA.

INCOMING is an epic failure on both a spiritual and artistic level. The movie has competent cinematography and good acting. However, it suffers from unlikeable characters, lackluster “shock” humor, and an unsatisfying ending. Moreover, it features a hedonistic worldview promoting drug use, constant swearing, and a brief male-on-male sex scene. Any semblance of a Christian worldview flew out the window. As a result, MOVIEGUIDE(R) strongly urges older audiences to avoid this “fentanyl” stench of a movie.

The plot centers around a group of four boys treated as outcasts by the upperclassmen as they start their first week of high school. The main character, Benji (Mason Thames), is a nervous boy struggling to ask a popular girl out. The second member, Connor (Raphael Alejandro), is an excitable teen with the face of a baby. Eddie (Ramon Reed) is his wingman and is risk-averse to new activities. The last member, “Koosh” / Danash (Bardia Seiri), is an affluent social media influencer who lives in the shadow of his popular brother.

Wanting to prove themselves as the “cool kids,” the masculine quartet set off to crash a dangerous after-school party. Benji and Koosh hatch their plan to kiss the girls of their dreams. Meanwhile, Connor and Eddie bump into a teenage girl in a drunken stupor. As the night progresses, the party slides into a downward spiral of drugs, sex, and depravity. The four boys face cocaine, gang violence, and the possibility of being expelled from school. Will Benji and his friends be able to survive unscathed?

INCOMING lacks wit and basic human decency. Before diving into the negatives, the movie has a few redeeming qualities. For one, the casting is on point. The actors look, sound, and act like authentic teenage boys. The principal leads are NOT ethical people, but their performances are good. The second-best part is the cinematography. The movie is shot well and doesn’t feel like a cheap Netflix original movie.

A third decent attribute of INCOMING is Mr. Studenbaker (Bobby Cannavale), the boys’ eccentric chemistry teacher. He performs wild chemistry experiments and doesn’t harass any of his students. However, he does partake in drugs with his students, but he’s entertaining. The last saving grace is the movie’s ninety-minute runtime. It (thankfully) does not overstay its welcome. However, it packs those ninety minutes with an egregious worldview.

The movie endorses an ultra-hedonistic value system. There are no mentions of Christianity or abstaining from peer pressure. The lead characters resort to consuming drugs, stalking their potential girlfriends, and partying with drunken sophomore students. The characters get into gang fights, snort ketamine, and are physically bruised. There’s a subplot of two teenage girls whining about their broken lesbian relationship. Moreover, there is a brief scene of two men performing depicted anal intercourse (there are no visible private parts). The debauchery doesn’t stop there.

Another issue is that the entire cast is morally reprehensible. Benji tangles with gang members and lies to his love interest. Koosh locks himself and his crush in the basement to facilitate a date. After he breaks his back, she discovers his ruse and leaves him crying on the floor. Moreover, Koosh and Benji use the party’s surveillance system to spy on their crushes.

There is only one trace of decent morality. In a subplot, Eddie and Connor transport a drunk teenage girl to her house. The girl accidentally barfs on the boys’ car (a Tesla convertible that they drove with Eddie’s parents’ permission). The boys wash up the car, give the girl a fresh set of clothes, and return her home in one piece. It is the only “ethical” act in the movie.

The last shortcoming of INCOMING is its lackluster comedy. The movie uses “shock” humor, placing excessive “F” bombs and highly suggestive dialogue. The story veers into a “teenage apocalypse” during the party scenes. However, the humor is uninspired and too “try hard” for its own good. The comedy is subpar even if you stripped the movie of all its R-rated material.



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