Good Boy

LIKES: The Cinematography Direction The Sound Editing Originality All About The Setup Interesting Concepts The Dog The After Credits Reveal Summary: When it comes to independent films, I find myself always fascinated with the artistic choices of the director as they often tell stories in the most imaginative ways. Good Boy's small crew has accomplished much in their original tale, putting focus on the perspective of a dog in a very odd situation. As we find out in the after-credits scene, the perspective makes the difference, and Leonberg has put a lot of focus on coordinating stuff with the simplest of tricks. I loved the emotion, the ever-drifting angles of the sequence, and a film with little dialogue, but it tells a story through those incredible lenses. To find just the right shot to convey such hard moments is impressive, a technique lost in the modern-day trends of CGI and high special effects. The sound editing is gorgeous as well, subtle noises, crafty effects, and all the authentic dog noises were probably the strongest scare element of the movie, given how such sounds are hard for me to listen to. Again, it's nothing mind-blowing, unique, or truly a new vibe or sound, but it accomplishes much with a very minor budget to make it come to life.

Aside from the audiovisual effects, Good Boy's originality is a unique focus on following the dog through this "mystery" as he tries to keep his owner safe. A huge setup, the movie is a test of the audience's patience and understanding of loyalty versus conventionality. Indy's fierceness in their friendship is done so well, and the plot pays homage to what these animals can do, almost better than any human. That setup is an emotional roller coaster, and having a dog myself, its relevance helped to drive Leonberg's point across for me. Interesting concepts run alongside this part, trying to inject elements of horror that provide a mystery and thriller aura into the movie. And that allure of what haunts the house kept me guessing, trying to figure out where the film was going. I'll grant them some bonus points for adding some homage to the classic horror films of the past, which I thought was mirrored in several aspects of the film that I found creative. But most are going to care about the Dog, who accomplishes a lot in this film. Indy somehow conveys so much, and though the director reveals that the camera work does some lifting, the dog still has a spirit that helps to express so much of the emotional turmoil. He is also adorable to look at, his face, mannerisms, and those adorable moments of smiling, something I just naturally hover to and think dog lovers will absolutely love that aspect. Finally, my favorite part of the film was the revelation of how they made the movie at the end. It's a nerd quality, sure, but as my friend said, you can also find appreciation for how this small team accomplished this film, and the lengths it takes to make a movie without an army to make it.

DISLIKES: The Plot's Ambiguity Way Too Dark In My Theater Scare Factor Is Minimal Hard To Watch Moments Was The Revelation Worth It?

Summary: Where the movie veers away from enjoyment for me is what feels like too independent a concept that most may not enjoy. The plot's ambiguity is one aspect, a film that is a testament to the dog's loyalty, but the horror element needed work. You can find lots of interpretations, but Good Boy has a basic story without too many answers, trying to give you breadcrumbs to somehow piece together into a heavy story. I was left with more questions than answers, and not in a good way, as I waited to uncover something big in this house. For those who like abstract ways of thought, you might give this approach some more points, but I don't quite think it matches other artistic movies I've seen from film festivals. Even worse, the movie is too dark, as in visually dark to be enjoyable. Some elements do thrive in the shadows to start, especially at the beginning; however, when that tactic becomes too much that is obscures a lot of important details to an annoying level, that's where my friend and I didn't enjoy the film. The scare factor is minimal, relying too much on you being afraid of the dark, letting the claustrophobic grip have its way with you as the dog tries to do everything he can. As a result, the movie is not the most thrilling or scariest, which was again hard to enjoy as much as I wanted to see something horrifying waiting in the halls of the house. Ironically, the hardest, scariest moments to face were seeing the poor dog suffer at times. Those horrifying shrieks, the way he gets treated, and some other aspects I can't share to avoid spoilers are very difficult for me to watch, and at times, I found myself pissed at the choices they made to show that hurt the dog lover in me. Of course, the question comes up: was it all worth it? After reflecting on it, no, I don't think it was for most audiences. It is that concept that I think makes this film feel a little weaker, and what makes me think you might optimize your time at home on this one.

The VERDICT: Heartfelt, original, and creative, Good Boy has merits that show how independent films can be the masters of the movie-making art. Simple tactics create a complex presentation, full of authentic moments that are unique, intriguing, coordinated, and convey the primary message of what man's best friend can be prominent in. To have all these elements at a fraction of a budget gets my applause, and seeing that behind-the-scenes look helps put that perspective to the front enough to get some leeway. Yet, the movie's artistic liberties seemed a bit too free, and that made me feel quite bored at times, lost in this ambiguous enigma that this house has within its walls. The dark camera angles, forlorn stories, mundane scares, and focus on buildup did not come together to deliver the solid scary film they wanted. Such a small team accomplished a lot, but the directions were still a bit too independent for me, and I think I best enjoyed it at home. To score this is hard, but in the end, I give Good Boy: Comedy/Horror/Thriller: 6.5 Movie Overall: 5.0.

There's a rare kind of magic in cinema when an animal's gaze becomes the camera's conscience. Good Boy (2025) pulls this off with an almost stubborn sincerity.

Told from the perspective of Todd's loyal dog, the film invites us into a world where tail wags and ear twitches carry more dramatic weight than any overwrought monologue could. The plot - supernatural forces menacing a rural family home - is genre comfort food. You've seen shades of it before. But here, the choice to keep human faces mostly hidden shifts the emotional burden squarely onto our canine protagonist. And he carries it. My goodness, he carries it. This isn't just "good dog" acting; it's soulful, reactive, deeply felt work that makes you believe in the stakes. If there's a shortfall, it lies in the narrative scope. The mystery at the heart of Good Boy remains tantalizingly thin-more a sketch than a fully fleshed-out puzzle. The supernatural elements, while effectively eerie, don't unravel in ways that surprise or deepen the story, leaving the plot feeling somewhat familiar and linear. I found myself yearning for more-more time to explore the shadowy corners of this rural home, more twists that would test our canine hero's resolve, more layers to the dark forces at play.

The film's brevity and focus mean that certain story threads are only hinted at rather than fully developed, which can leave viewers craving a richer tapestry. But what the story lacks in complexity and breadth, it more than makes up for in raw, heartfelt emotion. The quiet, intimate moments shared between Todd and his dog feel remarkably tender and lived-in, as though we are privileged witnesses to a long-standing, unspoken bond. These scenes are so warm and authentic that they invite us to linger in the spaces between words and actions, feeling the weight of loyalty, love, and protective instinct in every glance and gesture. It's as if we're quietly intruding on a friendship that has been nurtured over years-a bond so natural and profound that it grounds the film's supernatural thrills in genuine emotional truth. It's rare for a film to remind you that sometimes loyalty is the best special effect.

Good Boy might not reinvent the supernatural thriller, but through a wet nose and unwavering eyes, it makes the genre feel freshly, achingly alive.

"Good Boy" is a supernatural horror film co-written and directed by Ben Leonberg. Starring Shane Jensen in the lead human role and Indy in the lead canine role, it makes effective use of its intriguing gimmick thanks to some creative direction and memorable performance from its animal actor.

In New Jersey, Todd (Shane Jensen) and his pet Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever dog Indy move into a house that was once owned by Todd's late grandfather (Larry Fessenden). Although the house is believed to be haunted, Todd brushes off these claims and tries his best to settle into this new location out in a remote wooded area. However, Indy begins to see unsettling things that Todd apparently cannot, including sinister shadows, frightening apparitions, and humanoid figures passing in and out of the house at their leisure. With few ways of communicating these supernatural happenings to Todd, Indy tries his best to cope with all of the scary occurrences that continue to haunt him and his owner out in this forested wilderness, whether their intentions are harmful or not.

It is reasonable to come to the conclusion that out of all of the animals we see depicted on screen, it is the humble dog that usually receives the most love from audiences around the world. Frequently referred to as "man's best friend", these canines always earn this nickname by means of their loyalty, dependability, and physical cuteness that is hard to resist. This is why nobody wants to see these innocent creatures either dying or being hurt right in front of them. After all, the catalyst for a certain popular action film franchise was the main character's dog being killed and him setting out to avenge its death by any means necessary. Utilising an interesting storytelling technique that is often overlooked, "Good Boy" is a worthwhile horror movie told from the perspective of a dog trying to protect his owner from the fearsome events they each experience that is equally as scary as it is heartfelt.

Told nearly entirely at the eye level of Indy, the film shows us all of the events unfold the way any dog may witness them occurring along with its owner. Beginning in a small dark lounge room lit only by TV static, we see Indy lying quietly next to his master Todd as the latter snoozes peacefully on the couch. Suddenly, something piques Indy's interest that causes him to look up; a human-shaped silhouette manifesting from the corner of the room. Before Indy has time to wake his owner up, Todd's mobile phone starts ringing, causing him to rise from his slumber to answer the call. On the other end of the phone is Todd's sister Vera (Arielle Friedman), who informs him that their grandfather has passed away and left his allegedly haunted house to Todd in his will. Deciding to move in right away, Todd packs up his things and takes Indy with him to live away from civilisation in this small house out in the forested area. Though Indy clearly doesn't like this change in living quarters, he chooses to put up with this for the sake of appeasing his owner.

Once the two of them settle in to the new place, strange things start to happen around Indy that Todd apparently cannot see. For instance, while Todd goes about his daily business around the house, Indy cannot look away from the stairs leading to the basement, as though there could be someone down there waiting to attack them. Even though Todd goes in and out of the basement without issue, Indy still senses something is a amiss and keeps his gaze firmly fixed on the darkness surrounding the door leading downstairs. Since he has no real way of verbally telling his owner of any potential danger, all Indy can really do is bark and whimper in hopes that Todd will stay away from danger, which yields mixed results in the long run. Knowing that Todd's safety means the world to Indy, you can't help but love this adorable canine friend in his pursuit of protecting his master from harm. Although as mentioned earlier, it's pretty easy to find a dog character likeable in just about every form of visual media.

Thanks to some innovative filming techniques, director Ben Leonberg always makes the audience feel as though they are watching every single event unfold directly from Indy's point of view. To achieve this, Leonberg almost always places the camera at ground level to give the viewer the impression that the world seems big and scary to a dog without a human owner to guide them around. As a result, you really do feel like you are experiencing the same amount of fear and confusion along with poor Indy at all times, whether it's witnessing a dark apparition bashing its head on a door or disembodied footprints appearing on the floor without warning. Even something as simple as a fox wandering around the woods in front of the house can come across as something sinister within the context of what a dog might perceive as threatening.

Additionally, Leonberg very rarely shows any human characters' faces, including Todd himself, obscuring them either with shadows or conveniently placed objects in the foreground. On that note, there's this one shot that stood out to me where Indy is seen standing behind the vertical wooden bars on the patio looking at Todd getting out of his car in the rain. Resembling a jail cell of sorts, I interpreted this as Indy being unable to break out of this symbolic language-restricted prison to warn his owner that danger lurks inside the house. Because we can't see Todd's face throughout all of this, the selling point here is Indy's concerned body language, reminding the audience that this is a dog's story and not the humans.

For a trained animal, Indy the dog does a superb job expressing just as much emotion as any real human actor, perhaps even more so in some cases. Belonging to director Ben Leonberg, Indy gives what could possibly be one of the best performances from a dog actor in the history of cinema, completely carrying the weight of the movie from start to finish. Reportedly, Leonberg spent 400 days over the course of three years trying to achieve the appropriate level of realism in Indy's on screen performance, and to say he succeeded would be an understatement. I've never seen a dog convey so many different emotional states from his face and body language alone, ranging from genuine fear in his eyes to his obvious relief that Todd is finally home after work. Also, without revealing spoilers, the final scene at the film's climax will likely cause dog lovers everywhere to well up with tears, though not in the way you might expect.

As a horror movie and a tribute to our canine friends, "Good Boy" succeeds in both departments by combining the two together to create one of the most unique experiences to grace cinema screens in a while. There wouldn't be many other filmmakers like Ben Leonberg willing to take the risk of telling a horror story entirely from a dog's point of view, let alone one who uses their own dog in the process, but this one proves that it was a risk well worth taking. Even if you aren't a dog person, there are still plenty of other aspects of the film to appreciate on a technical level, ranging from its consistently ominous atmosphere to some inventive cinematography that allows you to see things from an entirely different perspective. To everyone concerned for Indy's wellbeing, nothing bad actually happened to this dog in real life or in the film, as Leonberg was forced to confirm due to overwhelming public demand. Because of that, I can now say that all of those who love dogs like me can breathe a collective sigh of relief and watch the movie like normal.

I rate it 7/10.

The dog absolutely steals the show - sensitive, intelligent, and almost too good for this script. His expressions carry more emotion than half the cast combined. Unfortunately, the movie itself doesn't live up to his charm. The pacing drags, the tension barely flickers, and outside of a few brief moments that actually make you feel something, it's mostly flat.

A lovely performance by the dog, but the story just doesn't have enough bite.

"Good Boy" is a classic creepy haunted house story wrapped around a surprisingly fresh and original idea of having a dog as the protagonist. Indy the dog, playing Indy in the film, may well be one of the first canine actors to truly lead a horror movie-and he does a remarkable job, making the story feel more believable and perhaps engaging too. Most viewers will likely be won over by Indy alone.

The plot itself may feel a bit shallow and straightforward for seasoned horror fans, but the presence of the dog adds a unique charm that sets it apart. I liked some details which I can not spoil here, that make you think of your own relationship with your pet friend. There are a few effective jump-scare moments that are genuinely fun, even if the film is mostly a slow burn which leads to the expected. The pacing does drag at times, especially towards the end, but the consistent tone helps maintain focus without any distracting mood shifts.

Some of the dream sequences can be confusing, and I felt they could have benefited from sharper editing. The supernatural element (which is even revealed on the poster) remains vague and mostly unexplained, which-while slightly generic-might actually work in the film's favor by keeping the mystery in the "shadows". Though some of the effects look a bit cheap, the clever use of shadows and camera angles stands out. The creaking of the trees, the wooden house and the eerie soundtrack also fit the atmosphere nicely and draws you in.

If you enjoy slow-burn supernatural horror, you might find this film worth your time-just don't go in with sky-high expectations. I hope Indy makes good money out of this one to buy a life-time of bones :)