“Probably the most emotive actors of his era,” reads the IndieWire assessment of Ben Leonberg’s “Good Boy” out of the 2025 SXSW Movie Pageant. No, we weren’t speaking about some rising Juilliard graduate or Actors Studio alum. We had been speaking about an actor with 4 legs.
Indy is the star of “Good Boy,” and he’s a canine. The 73-minute horror film, which freelance reviewer Rafael Motomayor known as one of many yr’s greatest, is centered solely on his perspective as one thing very dangerous occurs at his home.
The official synopsis for “Good Boy,” additionally starring Shane Jensen, Arielle Friedman, and Larry Fessenden, reads: “Our canine hero, Indy, finds himself on a brand new journey together with his human proprietor — and greatest pal — Todd, leaving metropolis life for a long-vacant household house within the nation.
From the beginning, two issues are abundantly clear: Indy is cautious of the creepy previous home, and his affection for Todd is unwavering. After shifting in, Indy is instantly vexed by empty corners, tracks an invisible presence solely he can see, perceives phantasmagoric warnings from a long-dead canine, and is haunted by visions of the earlier occupant’s grim dying. When Todd begins succumbing to the darkish forces swirling round the home, Indy should battle a malevolence intent on dragging his beloved Todd into the afterlife.”
Written by Alex Cannon and Ben Leonberg — for our cash, “Good Boy” must also function a Leonberger because of this — the film drew raves at SXSW. Motomayor wrote, “We’ve all skilled the creepiness of a pet sensing one thing you possibly can’t; the eerie sensation that comes whenever you see a canine barking in the midst of the evening at an empty wall, looking at nothing, or wandering off in a rush to chase one thing that appears invisible. It’s spooky sufficient to witness in actual life, however add in some haunting horror imagery — as Ben Leonberg’s ‘Good Boy‘ does in nice provide — and it turns into a basis for one of many yr’s scariest films, albeit one which additionally doubles as an emotional and shifting tribute to the emotional bond between individuals and their four-legged buddies.”
Try the trailer for “Good Boy” beneath. The movie will hit theaters on Friday, October 3.
IFC/Shudder will launch “Good Boy” in theaters on October 3.