‘Good Boy’: An Indie Horror Film Told from a Loyal Dog’s Perspective

By John Hiett

Released on Oct. 3, 2025, the supernatural horror film, “Good Boy,” leads audiences into the spooky season from a dog’s perspective. That’s right, the majority, if not the entirety, of the film deals with the dog’s owner, Todd (Shane Jenson) being haunted by a looming supernatural threat, with the loyal retriever, Indy, taking the spotlight, protecting his owner.

Initially starting as a short film, the director Ben Leonberg and his wife, Kari Fischer, took it upon themselves to independently produce the film and was later picked up for a theatrical release by Shudder, a horror/thriller focused streaming service. Only having a budget of around $2.3 million, the film immediately surprised me with how much effort and detail was put into the production and polish for this director’s debut indie film.

In the opening scene, Todd and his dog, Indy are resting on the couch, when suddenly Todd begins to cough up blood due to his genetic condition of chronic lung cancer. Todd’s sister drives him to the hospital, leaving only Indy to notice a mysterious, shadowy figure in the corner of their house.

“Good Boy” presents the fear of the unknown, masterfully using that throughout the film to its advantage. Both the audience and Indy don’t know if the looming figure is somehow causing the illness or not and why the figure is watching them.

While simple, the scene sets up the idea that Todd and Indy are always being watched by some supernatural force, with the rest of the movie giving the same level of tension and dread despite the figure not being there. The ambiguity to what is causing Todd’s illness is effective in setting up the horror that they later face at his grandpa’s house. 

With the movie’s unique concept being about scary encounters from a dog’s perspective, I feel that I have to talk about Indy’s amazing training and performance in the film. 

Over the course of three years, Ben and Kari trained Indy, who is their pet dog, by making silly noises and giving treats after walking around the house as they filmed him. Although Indy himself doesn’t show much emotion, the movie perfectly uses the Kuleshov Effect, which is when two sequential shots are juxtaposed against each other to present more meaning than one shot. This makes an otherwise normal shot have an eerie feeling to it. Indy’s expressions and movements are paired with a shadowy corner or door slowly opening to raise the scene’s tension and suspense. 

The music score and visuals all work in tandem to make this movie very memorable. The supernatural elements in the movie are truly creepy as they are always in the background and slightly out of focus, leaving your imagination to do the rest. The movie score is also phenomenal as there’s a lot of screeching and drowning sounds created by the violins and cellos to heighten the suspense.

The bond between Indy and Todd is a huge focus throughout the movie, breaking up suspense with wholesome moments, giving you time to breathe and really enjoy seeing a dog being cute and the pair truly caring for and loving each other. 

Despite the duo facing scary and supernatural elements, the film acts as a reminder to truly appreciate your pets no matter how tough or bleak a situation might be. Pets will always be there for you.

I appreciate this movie’s tasteful take on horror; it’s all mainly built on suspense and the fear of the unknown, with very few jump scares that cheapen the experience. It’s a testament to filmmaking that a dog-centered horror film can be both captivating with its supernatural elements, but also give time to focus on the sweet moments between a dog and its owner. 

If you’re willing to be a bit brave, I would recommend seeing the movie not only to support a passion-driven indie film, but also to see how the relationship between Indy and Todd triumphs over the scary encounters thrown at them.

“Good Boy” is currently available to watch in theaters.

John Hiett is a senior biology major. He is passionate about any and all indie video games and loves getting coffee since starting college.

Images courtesy of What’s Wrong With Your Dog?