Good Boy is a haunted-house horror flick told from the perspective of the lovable dog, Indy, who fights to keep his human safe. The film’s premise is clever and it’s easy to get emotionally invested in Indy. But it also contains dark, ambiguous spirituality; disturbing, suspenseful scenes; and harsh (if limited) language.
Indy and Todd are best friends. They’re always palling around, hardly leaving each other’s side.
Then Todd lands in the hospital with a strange sickness. It takes a while, but eventually he’s released, and the dynamic duo are together once again.
Only, something’s different about Todd. He decides to leave the city, moving out to an old family home in the country. He seems to think the fresh air and quiet life will be good for him.
Indy, ever loyal, goes with him.
But all is not right in the house—Indy can sense it. A dark presence lurks in the shadows, just out of sight. It killed the home’s previous owner, and now it’s coming for Todd.
Too bad Indy can’t just tell Todd that. At least, not in a way that his friend is sure to understand. If Indy can learn to “sit” and “fetch,” why can’t Todd decipher a few important woofs?
Oh, Indy is a dog. Did I not mention that?
Now, with the dark presence growing (and Todd’s mysterious illness making an unwelcome return), man’s best friend must fight to save his master … and maybe himself, too.
Indy, the titular “good boy” in Good Boy, is indeed a very good boy. The film accurately depicts the unreserved love and loyalty often found in animal companions (particularly dogs). Indy does his best to protect Todd—even against forces he doesn’t quite comprehend—risking his life to help his master. Todd clearly cherishes Indy as well.
Todd’s sister, Vera, checks in on him frequently, especially after his stint in the hospital. A friendly neighbor lends Todd a generator for his house.
The hook of Good Boy is to tell a horror tale from the perspective of a dog. As such, many of the film’s spiritual elements are open to interpretation. Certainly, from Indy’s point of view, an evil spiritual presence menaces both him and Todd, and that presence is represented accordingly onscreen. Indy also receives visions from the past.
Vera describes their secluded family home as “cursed” and “haunted.” A man says he’s praying for another character.
Todd burns herbs and lights candles, which gives the appearance of a religious ritual, though he seems to do this simply for medicinal purposes.
Todd is briefly seen in his underwear.
While Good Boy eschews the kind of graphic violence prized by many of its horror-flick contemporaries, there are still a fair number of frightening scenes in the film. A dark figure attacks Indy and Todd, forcing the pup to fight for his life and the life of his owner. There are disturbing images, tense moments and a few jump scares.
A chain gets wrapped around a man’s throat. Someone repeatedly slams his head into a door, drawing blood. Blood drips from a man’s mouth. Indy falls from a second-story window.
Todd’s unnamed illness causes him to cough up blood, occasionally in shocking amounts, and his physical health deteriorates over the course of the film.
Someone dies, melting into a skeleton. We hear about the death of another person, and that many members of Todd’s family died young. An animal’s skeletal remains are seen. A terminal diagnosis is given.
The f-word is used three times, and the s-word is heard twice. Jesus’ name is abused once. God’s name is misused four times, often paired with “d—.” We hear four uses of “h—.”
Todd tries to sign up for an experimental clinical trial. (He is rejected.) He burns herbs for purported respiratory benefits. An empty bottle of medication rests by his bedside.
Cocaine is mentioned during a conversation about the types of things that dogs are trained to sniff out. Empty beer cans and wine bottles are seen—whether they belong to Todd or a previous resident is left unclarified.
Todd tells Vera that Indy never leaves his side and jokes that he can’t go to the bathroom “without a witness.” While on a walk in the woods, Todd relieves himself on a tree.
An old video talks about the mutually beneficial relationship between early cavemen and their canine companions. We see taxidermized animals.
It’s a common movie trope that dogs know when something is wrong long before anyone else, though not without good reason. Good Boy takes that trope and makes a whole film out of it, following the faithful Indy as he tries to protect Todd. It’s an inventive take that elevates this story above other run-of-the-mill haunted house pics. And it comes with some interesting bonuses, too.
First, if you’re a dog person, you’ll likely be instantly invested in this movie’s protagonist pooch, who could rival Lassie or Air Bud in terms of four-legged stagecraft. The film nails the emotional connection between man and man’s best friend, highlighting the unconditional love and loyalty that our furry companions can provide.
“Animals, as a symbol, dogs especially, are protectors,” director Ben Leonberg said in an interview with Variety. “They’re members of our family who are not human, but they are so crucial to humanity.”
Second, presenting a horror movie from a dog’s eyes spares us from some of the content issues that can crop up in similar fright-flick fare. That’s not to say that the filmmakers would have added more problematic content to Good Boy if their hero had been human instead of canine, but it certainly limits what could have been inserted. And the film uses this “limitation” to great effect, focusing more on atmosphere and suspense.
That said, Good Boy is far from a family-friendly film. It’s a horror movie that fills its brisk 72-minute runtime with plenty of dread, disturbing moments and—depending on your read of the movie—dark (if vague) spirituality. Language, while limited, is harsh for a PG-13 movie. And we get a picture of a man suffering through a serious illness, which could bother some sensitive viewers.
Good Boy is a clever take on the horror genre that may draw in too-young viewers due to its adorable protagonist. But while Indy the dog deserves a wholehearted “good boy,” Good Boy requires a bit more discernment.
Bret loves a good story—be it a movie, show, or video game—and enjoys geeking out about things like plot and story structure. He has a blast reading and writing fiction and has penned several short stories and screenplays. He and his wife love to kayak the many beautiful Colorado lakes with their dog.
