The bond between human and dog is a special one. Anyone who has made that connection understands it is one of the few unconditional loves this life has to offer. Dog lovers memorize every quirk of their furry friend, and our dogs — according to one study — can learn an average of 89 words from us. Canines are often smart and curious creatures who have finely tuned senses of hearing and smell, to a degree that we can’t even comprehend. This is most apparent when you see a dog staring into space, or at a wall. “What is it that you are looking at?” we wonder. With his new film Good Boy, Ben Leonberg asks, “What if dogs can perceive a supernatural presence beyond our senses?”
When Indy (starring as himself) and his human Todd (Shane Jenson) move to a rural family home, Indy starts to notice an otherworldly presence in the house. As the presence closes in, Indy will do anything to protect his best friend.
The entire film is told from Indy’s perspective. Unlike the 2003 family comedy Good Boy! and animated horror-comedy Courage the Cowardly Dog, this Good Boy never features any dog dialogue — internal or otherwise. But Indy nevertheless carries the film with an expressive performance that earned him the “Howl of Fame Award” at this year’s SXSW Film & TV Festival. It’s what elevates the film from high-concept horror movie to a heartbreaking love story between human and canine. Every bark, whimper and growl demonstrates emotional range — especially impressive when you consider the fact that Indy has no concept of what a movie is.
Leonberg doesn’t let his star’s performance go to waste, creating a stressful and bone-chilling narrative. He takes a naturalistic approach, keeping the camera at Indy’s eye level and letting us see things from roughly his perspective, even if we aren’t seeing the action directly from his point of view. The dog’s instinctive duty to protect his person builds tension, while our natural love for dogs constantly keeps us invested. This tension is rewarded thanks to artfully employed jump-scares. Not the sort of unearned and abundant jump-scares we see so frequently these days — these are the payoff to a long build-up, and they earned the film Scariest Feature Film Award runner-up honors at the spring’s Overlook Horror Film Festival, where organizers had to triple the screening size to meet audience demand.
Leonberg takes a high-concept idea with an emotional core and executes it using a phenomenal lead performance from his best friend. It’s one of the year’s unique horror experiences and has rocked a series of genre festivals along the way — the type of experience that will have dog lovers racing home to hold their favorite little guys tight.
