Les Nouveaux

This movie comes across as every 80s movie wrapped into one and not in a good way. If you grew up with the 80s movies or have made your way through them watching with your parents one evening when they were feeling nostalgic, you'll be able to pick out bits and pieces from every single one of them. Mesh them all together and you end up with this copy-cat. Nothing original and a less than exciting music score. On the other hand, it would make a great series for pre-teens and middle-schoolers who have yet to experience what high school is really like. Maybe Netflix was testing the water with this on. Go ahead. It'll probably be popular with Gen Alpha. Everybody likes to say they are like Gen X anyway.

Incoming is a Netflix movie created, written and directed by Chernin brothers, the same guys behind the series The Mick. The storyline follows four high school freshmen boys Mason Thomas, Ramon Reed, Raphael Alejandro, and Bardia Seiri. The first week of school Koosh's brother is throwing a big bash at his place. Mason who plays Benj has the hots for Bailey (Isabella Ferreira) and the party is the perfect chance for him to get to know her better. This is a combination of several teen movies much like Superbad, American Pie and any other teen movie. Bobby Cannavale played Mr. Studebaker the chemistry teacher who ended up attending the teen party and getting wasted. The end of the credits there is a short reel with him. Coincidentally there were a few actors from The Mick who had cameos which include Kaitlin Olsen, Thomas Barbusca, and Scott MacArthur. The movie covers the current teen topics of catcalling, drugs, and validation. I got to say I enjoyed this movie, it's been a while and but it isn't something I would watch again.

Four friends are starting high school. Misadventures begin. This is written and directed by Dave Chernin and John Chernin. The brothers are probably the most important people in this project. They did some Sunny in Philadelphia and co-created The Mick. That's why they got Kaitlin Olson. They seem to be going for Superbad and Project X. It's nowhere near as good as Superbad. Mostly, I don't love the four boys, but they are young enough to play high schoolers. It is odd that they are all going with older ladies. The lead coupling is cute and that's most appealing story. Benji should do his singing with all the marker marks on his face. That would be funnier. The movie is fine, but it's always a little less than optimal. The creepy kid has a creepy encounter. I would have paired him up with someone scary and scared him straight and maybe she could protect him from the older brother. Again, that would be funnier. The two spares has a surprisingly PG time with the school hottie. I'm not a fan of poop jokes and her poop looks like mustard. The general idea of this movie is fine, but I would modify some of this. I appreciate what Cannavale is trying to do, but his character needs to be a socially-awkward science nerd and I don't buy him in that. This movie has its moments.

Plot

Four freshmen navigate the terrors of adolescence at their first-ever high school party.

Cast

Mason "The Black Phone" Thames arguably leads and flanked by the likes of veteran Bobby Cannavale who is on incredible form here! Always Sunny star Kaitlin Olson and a bunch of kids I'm not familiar with though deliver for the most part especially Isabella Ferreira.

Verdict

In a rare decision to watch something that's not a horror movie I picked Incoming for movie night and figured based on the description it would be something in the vein of Good Boys (2019) which I enjoyed considerably more than I expected. Well, I was right even though it's not on quite the same level.

Putting kids into the same adult situations while telling a bit of a goofy coming of age story Incoming delivers the laughs, an element of gross out humor, some touching moments and a mostly decent cast.

The older I get the harder I am to please but especially harder to make laugh and that's why I seem to have distanced myself from the entire comedy genre, thankfully Incoming renewed my faith a bit. It's hardly art, but it provides giggles and sometimes that's all we need.

Rants

The US movies always present a very different world than in the UK. When I was a kid there were no "First high school parties", house parties on the scale of these movies simply weren't a thing and you know what else wasn't? Proms! The UK isn't known for that, sure there are some these days but I never got to experience that. On the flipside at least my high school experience involved zero fear of being shot, so there's that.

The Good

Cast deliver Isabella Ferreira and Bobby Cannavale were great Some genuinely funny moments

The Bad

Bit cliched in places Not convinced by that final scene Kaitlin Olson.

I honestly enjoy movies like these it was just a funny and raunchy teen movie. But it is a movie to leave in the background to be honest. Casting was odd though because the irl age difference w the love interests is 17 and 21. It also seems like it was very unoriginal and with time we should move on to new things. Ykwim? It just seems like Superbad and project X mixed together or something, as a group we need to move on from movies that are about wanting to go to "big kid parties" and find something new to enjoy. I think that is also only because the new actors these days are just different. I can't explain it but they are diff.