Have you ever wondered what your dog is looking at? Maybe it starts barking at something that doesn’t seem to actually exist. This is the question that the new movie, “Good Boy” tries to answer. 

Horror movies have existed for a long time, creating basic and overused tropes. Trying to create something original in a popular film genre can be difficult, but “Good Boy” manages to stand out. It uses the classic haunted house trope, but this time, it is from the perspective of a dog.

The film starts out with Todd (Shane Jenson) and his loyal retriever, Indy, late one night. When Todd’s sister finds Todd passed out on his couch unconscious and blood spilling out of his mouth, Todd is quickly rushed to the hospital. After his stay, Todd makes a last-minute decision to move to his deceased grandfather’s house with Indy. 

From the start, Indy distrusts the house. He constantly sees shadows in the corners, and hears screams and creaking from the basement. As the film progresses, Todd’s health continues to get worse. He regularly coughs and throws up blood. As his health deteriorates, Indy’s visions become more frequent. In the end, Indy must help Todd, while battling his own fears of the house.

The plot itself is mediocre; there are not many twists, causing most of the movie to be repetitive. However, since it is from the dog’s perspective, a complicated plot could make it difficult to understand. Additionally, the movie is not dialogue-heavy because of the point of view, so complicated twists would be hard to display.

One of the strongest parts of the movie is how it shows Indy’s perspective. Most movie shots are from Indy’s line of sight, fully immersing the viewer with the movie. Todd’s face is usually cast by shadows, further showing who the real protagonist is. 

What makes this even more remarkable is that the movie is from a small production team. There were only two people working during the initial filming process. The director and writer of the film, Ben Leonberg, took 3 years to completely film the hour long movie. Indy obviously never knew he was acting, bringing new difficulties to production. He was only able to shoot in 3 hour increments, with many distractions along the way.

The editing especially stood out. Since Indy was not aware he was being filmed, it was difficult to portray his emotions accurately. The editors had to use the kuleshov effect, or using multiple shots in a sequence instead of one to show emotions. For example, there would be a clip of Indy looking at a wall, seemingly normal. Then it would be followed by a clip of something scary, and now Indy’s expression seems scared rather than neutral. The viewers perceive more meaning than what is actually being shown.

Ultimately, “Good Boy” is a unique movie from an indy film company. Although the plot is basic, the different perspective connects the viewers with the loyal, canine hero. After watching the movie, many viewers may start to look at their dog a little differently.