Good Boy (2022) Review: Man Bites Man in Weird ‘Dog’ Thriller
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Maybe this was the pitch for the 2022 Norwegian thriller ‘Good Boy’: What if Christian Grey from ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ was younger, slightly poorer, millionaire not billionaire, and an anti-social psycho who is into puppy play?
Interestingly, there is also a 2025 American horror film by the same name, a haunted house tale shot from the perspective of a dog called Indy, a beautiful Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever. So when Prime Video threw ‘Good Boy’ as a recommendation on the home page, I quickly mistook this Norwegian film for the dog horror flick and clicked ‘watch’ at lightning speed.
Of course, the gross error was made evident in the very first few minutes, which was briefly horrifying: watching a handsome young man cook a meal in a fancy mansion and serve it in a dog bowl to another man who’s dressed like a dog. What the hell? But then again, it sounds weirdly interesting, doesn’t it?
Written and directed by Viljar Bøe, Good Boy follows millionaire heir Christian (Gard Løkke) as he starts to date Sigrid (Katrine Lovise Øpstad Fredriksen), a young student. Christian is handsome, charming, and the perfect date, that is, until Sigrid finds out he lives with an unusual roommate called Frank (Nicolai Narvesen Lied), a man who dresses and behaves as if he were a dog.
“What’s his deal?” Sigrid wonders. So does the viewer. And Viljar Bøe takes viewers on a slow-burn, unsettling ride that promises to be as bizarre as bizarre goes. Too bad that the writers then opt for the easiest twist to explain what really is happening in Christian’s world.
Weirdly, early on in ‘Good Boy‘, Sigrid’s flatmate Aurora (Amalie Willoch Njaastad) casually admonishes her for being judgmental. It’s a not-so-subtle plot device targeted at the viewer, it’s basically the director telling us: “Hey, relax, it’s not such a big deal, just see where it goes.” And it works. Aurora convinces both Sigrid and the viewer to lower their guard for a bit and figure out what Christian and Frank’s deal is. It works out well enough for thriller fans. Not so much for Sigrid.
Gard Løkke plays Christian as the perfect eccentric millionaire fantasy, charming yet awkward, the type who cooks elaborate meals and surprises the girlfriend with breakfast in bed. Still, something about him never feels right (and not just because of the man-dog living situation). Katrine Lovise Øpstad Fredriksen sells Sigrid’s naïve affection well, but the script loses steam halfway through.
Although ‘Good Boy‘ moves at a slow pace and lacks the tense energy of a thriller right from the start, but at least the unique plot about a grown man having a man for a dog keeps one intrigued and invested in the strange events. But as soon as Frank utters his first human words in the film, the mystery completely shatters.
Nicolai Narvesen Lied, who plays Frank, the titular ‘Good Boy’, spends most of the film hidden inside a disturbing canine suit, his presence constantly unsettling. The climactic scenes hint at his backstory but only in passing, leaving viewers to fill in the blanks. And the moment you start doing that, the plot holes begin to pile up.
At its best, Good Boy works as a cautionary tale about the weirdos lurking on dating apps, and how you can never really be too careful about who you agree to have dinner with. At its worst, it’s just another kinky, offbeat horror flick you might accidentally stumble upon while you were in the mood for a ghost story with a real dog.
Rating: 5.5 on 10. ‘Good Boy’ is available on Prime Video.
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