There’s nothing that a dog-lover and horror enthusiast hates more than seeing a dog die in a movie. It’s a common trope, and even some of the best of the best have fallen victim to it, from Jaws to Hereditary. This is why Ben Leonberg’s debut horror movie, Good Boy, feels like such a breath of fresh. It’s a horror movie where not only does the dog not die first, but it also just so happens to be the main character of the whole damn film. If watching a dog be haunted by supernatural forces sounds excruciating to you, Good Boy may not be the movie for you. However, it is a movie that was clearly made by those who love their four-legged friends just as much as we do.
What Is ‘Good Boy’ About?

Image via SXSW

Good Boy begins with our canine hero, Indy, being haunted by a creepy shadow in the corner of an apartment. As he snuggles up closer to his owner/best friend Todd (Shane Jensen), he realizes that something is seriously off. It’s not until Todd’s sister Vera (Arielle Friedman) rushes in that we realize that Todd is very sick. The film then cuts to an emotional montage as we see the world from Indy’s eyes, being adopted by Todd as a puppy, playing fetch, and napping. It’s not long before we learn that Todd has been sick for quite some time. Todd soon moves to the remote farm of his late grandfather, which not only worries Vera but also is freaking Indy out, especially as the same darn shadow has seemingly followed him to the location. As Todd’s condition worsens, Indy uses his canine wits to uncover that something supernatural is afoot, and it may be coming to claim his favorite human.
‘Good Boy’ Makes Good Use of Its High-Concept Premise

On paper, Good Boy seems like a concept that might work better as a short film, rather than a full-fledged feature film. Especially since we rarely see a human face on screen that isn’t obscured or cut off at a weird angle. It’s also not like Indy is a talking dog either, but Leonberg effectively displays the loving pet’s personality. He makes sure that we don’t just love Indy because he’s cute, which, yeah, is certainly part of the reason why we grow attached to him, but he goes on his own journey throughout the film, one where he is finally able to conquer his fears and learn how to let go.
With a run-time that is just over 70 minutes, Good Boy never wears out its concept. The supernatural elements are simple enough, and Leonberg makes a smart move in never directly telling the audience what exactly this ghost is, instead relying on visuals. It helps better put the audience in Indy’s shoes paws. After all, he’s the one we’re rooting for, and we obviously don’t want to see yet another horror movie where the dog, once again, dies.

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One of the big reasons why Good Boy works as well as it does is that it takes itself fairly seriously. This isn’t a comedy or a parody, it’s genuinely unnerving during certain segments, especially as Indy and Todd watch strange old home movies featuring the latter’s late grandfather, or as the former is visited by the ghost of a dog named Bandit, where he’s equally entranced yet terrified of the four-legged spirit. Leonberg steers away from talking down to the audience. Just because he’s obviously a dog-lover, who presumably made a horror movie for fellow dog-lovers, doesn’t mean that he diverts away from making some that genuinely feels scary. While the movie is never reliant on jump-scares, the ones that are in the film feel earned and never cheap.
‘Good Boy’ Is a Film About Confronting Your Fears

Image via SXSW

As Good Boy progresses, we find ourselves wondering how in the hell Indy and Todd will escape their otherworldly haunting, if they even will. The movie begins to feel almost too bleak in its third act, resulting in an ending that feels a bit too anti-climactic. While the overall themes of grief and confronting your fears are represented nicely, especially in the excellent final scene, the 5 minutes beforehand feel off compared to the rest of the movie, ultimately feeling like something akin to Insidious rather than the unique tone that the movie had previously set up.
While Todd is technically the only other main character in Good Boy, Leonberg makes a bold decision to make the only face that we see throughout the entire movie Indy’s, with just a few exceptions. Even in the scenes where there isn’t a demon or a ghost lurking in the corner, the film is able to make us feel just as scared as Indy is by the friendly but intimidating fox-hunting neighbor, Mr. Downs (Stuart Rudin). Because of the film’s shorter runtime, it’s fairly easy to adjust to Indy being the entire focus of the film. Within the first 5 minutes, the movie is quickly able to establish Todd and Indy’s strong bond. We’ve all heard the joke about not caring if a human dies in a horror movie, but because the movie establishes how much affection Indy has for Todd. He truly cares for his human and, because of that, so do we.
For a debut filmmaker, making a film like Good Boy as your first feature feels like a pretty risky bet. But Leonberg shows so much promise, ultimately delivering a horror movie that not only has the scares but also a massive heart. However, it does also help that the movie is centered around a cute dog.
Good Boy had its world premiere at the 2025 SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas.

Good Boy

Good Boy delivers solid scares alongside its adorable canine protagonist.

Release Date

March 8, 2025

Runtime

73 minutes

Director

Ben Leonberg

Writers

Ben Leonberg, Alex Cannon

Pros & Cons

Good Boy’s 70-minute runtime prevents the concept from ever overstaying its welcome.
The movie finds clever ways to put us into Indy’s perspective.
Good Boy is not only able to make the audience care about Indy, but his human owner too.

The third act feels anti-climatic and leans more into typical horror tropes.