Good Boy (2025) - Movie Review
What do you get when a brilliant filmmaker makes a horror film from the perspective of a dog?
One of the most heartfelt stories ever produced in the genre’s history.
Let’s discuss.
Good Boy is a 2025 horror film from writer/director Ben Leonberg and writer Alex Cannon. You won’t recognize either of them unless you’re into the short film scene. Don’t let that deter you from watching their film. This is one of the best takes on the horror genre. Leonberg and Cannon crafted something amazing here, and although it’s earned various awards, it’s not enough. This film is two movies in one, and requires the viewer to pay attention. Which is becoming rarer in this age of streaming exposition dumps.
The film focuses on Indy, a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever who’s adopted by a nice young man named Todd. Todd and Indy become an inseparable pair, until one tragic day when Todd begins acting strangely. Indy begins to sense something is wrong, but as a dog, he can only do his best to provide comfort. As Todd spirals, he decides to spend a week at the house in the middle of nowhere that he inherited from his grandfather. What begins as an attempt to rest and relax quickly turns into a nightmare. A dark force is stalking Todd, and only Indy can see it. As Todd cleans up his grandfather’s house, he begins to find similarities between himself and his grandfather and the malady that afflicted them both. Will Indy be able to hold back the darkness, or will he sink with his owner into the dark whirlpool of Todd’s family’s curse? Find out in tonight’s feature: Good Boy.
It’s Homeward Bound meets Jacob’s Ladder.
There’s a rule in horror that all slasher villains must abide by or else lose the audience: Don’t Kill the Dog.
Now, this is in no way a slasher film. The film’s subgenre falls somewhere between Cosmic Horror and Cursed Location horror. In these types of films, the family pets often die in horrible ways. Like in my previous review this month, The Whole Truth, where the cat's dying was a crucial story point. In Cosmic Horror, anything and everything is destined to die. To say I was nervous for Indy would be an understatement. The dog is positioned perfectly in the film and is a magnificent animal. He’s a lovable lead, and the stress of knowing something bad is happening and that Indy can’t understand the words being said around him makes the film tense in almost every scene.
The film was shot from Indy’s point of view. It’s such a novel concept, and it’s made better by the little details. Things like how Indy can’t see faces. Dogs are face blind, and the fact that they not only include this detail, but also use it to build tension, as well as be how one of the big reveals in the film is unveiled, is incredible.
There isn’t a straightforward plot.
You’d think that would be a negative, but the filmmakers used the sparing dialogue to throw red herrings left and right. Indy can’t understand what’s being said, but you, the viewer, can. However, because Indy doesn’t have any interest in what the humans are saying, you only hear bits and pieces. It’s in this disjointed information that you’re led down a twisting path, your mind jumping to one thing while the actual reality is so much simpler.
The sound design is fantastic. As Indy’s vision has issues, as all dogs do, the main sensory input the audience experiences on behalf of Indy is the soundscape of the old, creepy house and the monster that may reside within. Every scene is layer upon layer of well-mixed audio between the ambient television dialogue, the creaking floorboards, and the sounds of the frequent storms.
Low-Budget films need to nail the basics, and Good Boy checks those boxes.
I want to say more. I was tempted to do a spoilers section, but really, this movie needs to be seen. The love and care the filmmakers put into the film is evident in every scene, and the finale is breathtaking in its simple but effective reveals.
This is a film I would recommend to families with older children, as there’s nothing objectionable in the film. Language, violence, and all are kept to a minimum, and the messaging is powerful.
Check it out streaming eclusively on Shudder/AMC+
