Good Boy is a twisted take on man’s best friend making its world premiere at Beyond Fest. The film centers on Sigrid and Christian who are matched up on through a dating app. Everything is going perfectly until Sigrid comes to find out that Christian lives with a man who acts like his pet dog. She is understandably shocked, but is willing to move forward since Christian has so much going for him. She soon learns there is a darker side to Frank.
There are a couple of directions that writer/director Viljar Bøe can go in and the one he chooses is arguably the most upsetting. As with any relationship in which one person is in such a dominant position, power and control are important themes. Good Boy deals with them subtly, using a comment here and a revelation there in order to give audiences an understanding of what is going on.
The dynamic between Sigrid and Christian is just as interesting to watch play out. From the very beginning, being charge is integral to everything that happens. Bøe’s writing stands out in the interactions between the two. To paraphrase a comment made by Sigrid, Bøe takes things at his own pace. The first hour of the film is a slow build that culminates in a frantic ten minutes. Exchanges and actions from early on pay off during the climax.
The pacing of Good Boy is different from other thrillers. Instead of a roller coaster ride, the plot continually moves forward until its wild conclusion. The film does not waste time during its finale, either. It continues to tell a tight story that culminates in an ending that will leave audiences unrattled. In an age where the goal seems to be to shock as many people as possible, Bøe succeeds with a genuinely unsettling story.
Good Boy makes its World Premiere at Beyond Fest September 27
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