WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!
Good Boy is getting a ton of attention online right immediately, and fans are curious to know whether the dog that stars in the film, Indy, makes it through to the end of the movie.
The Ben Leonberg-directed film, produced with wife Kari Fischer, is uniquely led by their dog, Indy.
Here’s a synopsis: “Our canine hero, Indy, finds himself on a new adventure with his human owner—and best friend—Todd, leaving city life for a long-vacant family home in the country. From the start, two things are abundantly clear: Indy is wary of the creepy old house, and his affection for Todd is unwavering. After moving in, Indy is immediately vexed by empty corners, tracks an invisible presence only he can see, perceives phantasmagoric warnings from a long-dead dog, and is haunted by visions of the previous occupant’s grim death. When Todd begins succumbing to the dark forces swirling around the house, Indy must battle a malevolence intent on dragging his beloved Todd into the afterlife.”
The film also stars Shane Jensen, Arielle Friedman, and Larry Fessenden.
Many people want to know before seeing the film: does the dog die?
Indy survives in the movie, but it’s still heartbreaking.
Indy lives, but is spooked by shadowy figures around him. There is also a corpse of another dog that died before this movie, in case that is too triggering for some viewers.
By the end of the film, his owner Todd is revealed to be suffering a deadly disease that cannot be cured. Indy tries to cut his owner as he is being dragged into a cave in the basement of the home, where Todd dies.
People are interpreting the movie’s events in two ways: literally that something supernatural was happening, but also that it might be a metaphor for Indy’s interpretation of Todd being consumed by his illness and eventual death.
Todd’s sister eventually comes and finds Indy waiting for Todd to return, which is seemingly what led to the other dog in the film passing away from waiting around in mourning. Indy ultimately goes home with Todd’s sister, suggesting he will be moving on, unlike the previous dog that did not survive.
The director recently spoke out about the “does the dog die?” trope in an interview.
“Horror movies, I think in particular, have trained audiences to expect that dogs frequently don’t make it out of act one. The concept we’re playing on is how there’s that dog in a horror movie who won’t go into the basement, or he’s always staring into empty corners or suspicious of the creepy neighbor. That dog usually doesn’t make it out of the first 30 minutes because he foresees the evil, and the evil forces take him out,” he told Gizmodo.
“We’re obviously telling a story entirely from the dog’s perspective. So the dog is there for the whole film, but I think that’s part of the reason people are so invested in his story. And I’ll say, I think the reason the movie has done so well in the festival circuit and people are excited to see it is Indy and his performance. So we’re excited for people to go [see it in theaters] and have that same experience that early festival audiences have had. I’m thrilled it is engendering the reaction it’s getting.”
He also discussed it with CinemaBlend, comparing Indy to Tom Cruise.
“It’s probably not so different from what I think people know when they go and see a Mission: Impossible movie. Tom Cruise isn’t gonna die, but the filmmaking still has to let you think he might fall off that airplane and die potentially for real when you’re watching Mission: Impossible. So, it’s a different way to solve a kind of similar problem.”
Find out the scariest movies to movie on Netflix.
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