Good Boy

I've watched Good Boy in Lisbon during the horror festival MotelX. I had some expectations because the whole idea of having someone dressing up as a dog called my attention while scrolling through the movie list.

The flick starts great - the cinematography, atmosphere, acting and humorous moments felt truly genuine and you could feel the audience feeling it as well.

It keeps you curious on why the hell this guy has a person in his house wearing a dog custom, and your imagination starts wondering if it's really a human or another "thing".

It develops pretty well and you can tell the moment when it all turns south, this is perhaps the part that I didn't enjoy so much. When we all knew what was going on, I felt the acting went a bit too much and not in the best way. In my opinion, it didn't reach that "insane" psychopath status that leaves actors in the best performance lists. Even though there were some good parts in it.

Overall, still one of the best horror flicks I've watched this year, much more interesting than most high budget movies out there. Someone mentioned it was Viljar Bøe 3rd movie, which is insane in my perspective, in a good way.

This movie could've been creepy, unsettling, could've been one of those that keeps you guessing with twists, turns and thrilling suspense. It was heading that way, at least.

But then, halfway through the movie, most is revealed in a short and not at all shocking scene and that's it. You're left with no questions about what's actually happening, there wasn't enough build up, there wasn't enough guessing, it went from "an unusual but OK situation" to "an unusual and BAD situation" without any real development from one to the other. There are no great discoveries, no "I didn't see this coming", there's no gradual uncovering of the truth. It feels rushed and half assed, feels like the writer had all this creepy story planned out but got lazy halfway through it.

And from then the movie starts tripping and falling over the typical thriller/horror movie unnerving cliches that just make you angry at the victims for their utter incompetence and stupidity. And that's how it ends, as a predictable lazy attempt at what could've been great.

I have to admit, the premise instantly piqued my interest, but unique premises in horror aren't really that hard to come by. Even with being the most ridiculed film genre, you'll be hard pressed to find more interesting stories than those found in horror, and this one is no exception. But at one hour and 12 minutes, it's really unfortunate that the potential of the premise wasn't fully realized, although the end result was more than satisfactory.

We have a tale about a girl who meets a man on a dating app, and that man happens to have a pet dog who is a man in a suit. Everything seems pretty "normal" for most of the movie (or as normal as anyone with a pet human dog can be), until things take a turn and everything is flipped upside down. But why is it happening? Why is Frank a dog to begin with? So many unanswered questions, that an hour and some change did not give adequate time to have answered. As such, I was really going to write this movie off as wasted potential, until that ending.....

I've seen some creepy stuff in horror, but that ending sent a shiver down my spine. The films entire runtime was banking on that ending, and for that alone, it went from a forgettable film to a (dare I say) great one that people will be talking about for quite some time. There is no gore, very little violence, and no nudity, but the creepiness scale stays at a 10 throughout almost the entire film, and for that, it deserves at least a watch. True horror fans will surely appreciate it.

Girl meets boy through a dating app only to find he lives with someone who believes himself a dog.

The bizarre premise is what brought me to this movie. It does a good job keeping you entertained and curious. The nature of the plot is unsettling enough to give this movie a chance. The dog costume, though simple, is disturbing, to say the least, as are many of the situations seen throughout the movie. However, I feel the end result is a wasted opportunity. The premise was a perfect recipe to make a disturbing movie. Good Boys has its moments, but in the end, it fails to deliver. The ending was not good.

The film "Good Boy" is notable for its incredibly unusual and impactful premise, where a man behaves like a dog, creating a bizarre and unintentionally comical experience in certain scenes. While it may be slow for some viewers, the film's pace gradually becomes darker and more engaging. It offers an interesting critique of dating and modern relationships, delving into psychological analysis of love obsessions and power dynamics. However, it suffers from inconsistent writing, with the protagonist making implausible decisions, and it missed the opportunity to deliver a more impactful and disturbing narrative.