Good Boy (2025) – It’s a dogs life, find out what that means in this Perspective & POV film.

Good Boy (2025) Plot

In Good Boy, Todd moves from NYC to his late grandfather’s rural, long-vacant home in the woods, accompanied by his dog Indy. He suffers from a chronic lung condition (coughing, blood), and his sister Vera worries about his isolation, especially given rumorsthat the house is haunted. Meanwhile, Indy starts perceiving supernatural phenomena invisible to the humans: shadows, an apparition of the grandfather’s missing dog, a dark skeletal figure in mud.

The horror unfolds almost entirely from Indy’s perspective: low camera angles, muffled human dialogue, sensory cues as a dog might perceive them. The entity drags Todd into a subterranean tunnel; Indy chases, but Todd tells the dog, “You’re a good boy” as he accepts his fate. Vera arrives the morning after to discover Todd’s corpse and Indy waiting at the cellar stairs.

🎯 Themes & Style

• Perspective & POV: The film’s standout gimmick is telling a haunted-house story from a dog’s viewpoint. Director Leonberg said the dog “has no comprehension of [human] conversation… he wanders off to do his own exploration.”
• Loyalty & Bonding: The relationship between dog and owner underpins the emotional core—Indy’s loyalty becomes a strength even as the human world collapses.
• Ambiguity & Sensory Horror: Much is left unexplained: Todd’s illness remains vague, the supernatural hints rather than full explanation; the dog’s viewpoint limits our comprehension—mirroring how a dog sees real life.
• Visual Style: Many scenes shot from dog‐eye level, using sound/creaks/noises to build tension. The script is dialogue‐light.

✅ Critical Reception

• On Rotten Tomatoes: 89% Tomatometer from 157 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes
• The film is praised for its “visually striking, emotionally devastating” approach to horror via a unique perspective. Rotten Tomatoes
• Some criticism: the story is considered thin and the repetition of the POV gimmick causes the momentum to falter. Roger Ebert
• From real-viewer feedback: “I was very pleasantly surprised… genuinely creepy… the few jump scares were well executed.” Reddit
  “It was bad… 3 people walked out… no scares until last 10 min.” Reddit

So, while reception is broadly positive, it might be more about mood/experience than a tight narrative.

Selected Interview Quotes from Ben Leonberg

Here are some standout excerpts and talking points from Leonberg, pulled from interviews with Filmmaker Magazine, Bloody Disgusting, Daily Dead, Scariest Things, and others.

“What dog owner hasn’t wondered why their dog barks at ‘nothing?’ … with Good Boy I created what I call a haunted house movie from an entirely new perspective.”
Filmmaker Magazine

“The ‘scary’ scenes were always the most fun for Indy and the most creatively fulfilling for me. … Just as important a character as Indy is the haunted house itself.”
Bloody Disgusting!

“I’ve known him his whole life … I met him as a puppy in upstate New York.”
Austin Chronicle

“It’s been really fun talking to people after and someone says, ‘I’m not a horror fan, but I’m so glad I saw this, like. I saw this because I like dogs!’ … People seem to genuinely find the [movie] very effective, and then they want to talk about their relationship with their dog.”
Daily Dead

“It took Leonberg three years and 400 days … working with his real-life dog shaped the film, and why letting go of control was the only way forward.”
Points of Reviews

🎥 Why It Stands Out

• Unique POV: Very few horror films have been told entirely from an animal’s viewpoint.
• Dog as Lead Actor: Indy, the real dog, carries the film—not just a sidekick.
• Minimalist but Effective: Short runtime (~73 mins) makes it lean, and the sparse dialogue puts emphasis on sound & atmosphere.
• Blends Horror + Emotion: It’s not just scares—it’s about loss, illness, companionship.

⚠️ What to Know Before Watching

• Runtime is short (~73 mins)–fast pace, but could feel thin for some.
• Genre: Haunted house / slow‐burn horror rather than non‐stop jump scares.
• Some graphic imagery (bloody coughing scenes) and scary moments; rated PG‐13.
• If you’re sensitive to animal stress in movies, though the dog is the protagonist, there are tense scenes. Many viewers noted being anxious for the dog. Reddit

📦 Where to Buy/Stream

✅ Final Thoughts

Good Boy offers a fresh angle on the haunted house genre. It trades conventional jumps for atmosphere, and its emotional core (the dog’s loyalty) gives it weight. While the story may feel thinner than some horror epics, its uniqueness makes it a worthy entry (especially when you want to highlight something off-the-beat).

🎬 Basic Info

• Premiere & Release: World premiere at SXSW on March 10 2025. U.S. theatrical release October 3 2025.
• Title: Good Boy
• Release Year: 2025
• Director: Ben Leonberg (feature directorial debut)
• Screenwriters: Ben Leonberg & Alex Cannon
• Starring: Shane Jensen (Todd), Arielle Friedman (Vera), Larry Fessenden (Grandfather), and the dog Indy (as “himself”)
• Runtime: ~73 minutes (approximately 72 – 73)
• Genre: Supernatural horror / haunted‐house from a dog’s point of view