Sitting in the dark at Vidiots tonight, watching a preview of The Incomer with an audience filling the air with laughter, was an electric experience. It reminded me exactly why I love independent cinema. There is nothing quite like the shared, infectious energy of a crowd connecting with a film that is unapologetically itself.

Louis Paxton’s feature debut is a wildly original, deeply heartfelt Scottish story that masterfully balances absurd humor with touching dramatic themes. It centers on Daniel (played by Domhnall Gleeson), a socially awkward land recovery coordinator who is dispatched to a remote island to evict a pair of siblings, Isla and Sandy, from their ancestral home. What makes Gleeson’s performance so brilliant is his ability to ground the character’s discomfort in complete nuance, playing someone truly socially maladjusted authentically without ever making the performance lean into parody.

In the talkback after the screening, the filmmakers mentioned they considered using franchises like Harry Potter or Star Wars for his character’s obsession, but decided against it because Gleeson is in those films, feeling it would be strange for Daniel to be a fan of something the actor had been in. They went with Lord of the Rings for his fandom of choice.

The storytelling structure is exceptionally compelling because it explores the situation from multiple points of view, allowing the audience to empathize with both the siblings and the outsider despite their direct opposition. However it’s easy to empathize with Daniel due to his menacing boss forcing him to take on the task of evicting the siblings even though he clearly does not want to go to the island. Michelle Gomez is phenomenal as the boss. Her commanding presence adds the perfect tonal weight to the quirky tension.

The entire cast did a phenomenal job and had brilliant chemistry onscreen. However the freezing water scenes stood out to me as especially tricky and they made it look effortless. As an actor, I understand how challenging it is to navigate such intense environmental challenges, like being immersed in freezing cold water, while maintaining focus and hiding the physical discomfort. They did impressive work.

I genuinely fell in love with these characters, and the film left me wanting so much more of them. It’s the kind of world that could easily expand into a television series. I’d tune in weekly season after season just to follow the quirkiness of their lives and interactions.

If this sounds like your kind of cinematic chaos, check your local theater for showtimes starting September 25 and support indie filmmaking where it counts: at the box office!

Thank you to Harold at Pixel Scene Media for inviting me to the screening!