Playing around with different tunings to find the right riff for this new song I’m writing. Why are older musicians in love with Drop D? It doesn’t speak to me at all.
I’m a cat person, but I like other people’s dogs. Well, I like other people’s dogs just as long as I’m not staying the night in their home. It’s weird for both me and the dog, and I can feel that tension during the visit. The dog actually lives there, plus he or she has sharper teeth than I do.
Let’s see what the fine folks at Wikipedia have to say about this movie (please donate to them if you can):
Good Boy is a 2025 American supernatural horror film directed by Ben Leonberg, who co-wrote it with Alex Cannon. It stars Leonberg’s dog Indy alongside Shane Jensen, Arielle Friedman, and Larry Fessenden. The film follows Indy as he attempts to rescue his owner, a young man with a chronic lung disease, who is engulfed by a supernatural presence lurking in his late grandfather’s rural home.
The film marks the feature-length directorial debut of Leonberg, who conceived the idea after re-watching Poltergeist (1982) and noting the horror trope of dogs sensing the presence of ghosts before humans. He decided to write a traditional haunted house film from the perspective of a dog. Leonberg and Cannon began writing the script in 2017, emphasizing action and perspective over dialogue to reflect the dog’s point of view. Indy had no prior acting experience when Leonberg cast him in the lead role. The film was shot over a three-year period in Harding Township, New Jersey, with both Leonberg and Wade Grebnoel serving as cinematographers. Only Indy, Leonberg, and Leonberg’s wife Kari Fischer (who produced the film alongside Leonberg) were present on set for much of the shoot.
Good Boy premiered at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 8, and was released theatrically in the United States by Independent Film Company and Shudder on October 3. It received generally positive reviews, with praise for its ambitious concept, technical craftsmanship, visual style, emotionally resonant themes, and Indy’s performance. However, some were critical of the storytelling, citing a convoluted narrative and pacing issues. The film was a commercial success, grossing $8.7 million on a $70,000 budget.
The Rev-iew…
This is another one of those movies that came and went in 2025 while I was suffering from some new strain of COVID. I’d purchased a ticket, I just couldn’t find the strength to get to the theater. To boot, I hate watching new films when I’m sick. From that moment on, I’ll be reminded of feeling badly whenever I try to enjoy that film again. For validation, just ask Rise of Skywalker. Don’t worry; I watched it again as soon as I got better, and let’s not have that discussion tonight. Somehow, Palpatine returned.
As luck would have it, this film began playing in my favorite theater: home. The snacks are cheaper, the projectionist works with my urination schedule, and they don’t complain if I spark a little tree in the parking lot as a pre-show appetizer. If it’s worth watching, I probably own it.
Being one of the more interesting offerings of 2025, and there were a TON of horror films last year, I avoided all my favorite YouTube reviewers’ opinions with plague doctor level precautions. Also, I deleted my almost twenty year old Facebook account. Now there are zero film spoilers unless I go looking for them. I went into Good Boy completely blind. Color blind?
Not only is this an indie film, but it’s the director’s feature debut. That’s a lot of pressure for someone to endure, having recently followed Chris Stuckman go from page to finished project with Shelby Oaks. That said, Ben Leonberg draws from some masterful work. He mentions 82’s Poltergeist publicly, but I picked up on minimalized, simplistic tension in the same style as The Blair Witch Project and the original Paranormal Activity. Some of my favorite horror films subscribe to the “less is more” genre.
If you’ve read this review from the top, then you already know more about this movie than I did. I was under the impression that it was a home invasion film; I had no idea it was a haunted house flick! A welcomed surprise, considering how much chatter there was about this film on horror social media.
So, since it was a ghost movie, that placed it on an entirely different shelf of judgement. I really appreciated the subtlety of the paranormal experiences rather than going for a full on The Conjuring or Insidious style. Somebody involved with this project has dealt with actual shadow people before, because they portrayed them realistically and to the letter. That’s another discussion for another time, but I know those details to be one hundred percent factual.
Finally, we must discuss the star of the film: Indy. Named after famed, fictional archeologist Indiana Jones, this dog was believable from beginning to end. I’m sure it helped that he was quite familiar with the crew, but this animal was phenomenal. Most films nowadays would just choose to recreate the dog in CGI, but not on this $80,000 budget! Good dog, good dog. Fetch my wallet.
I could’ve seen this film overstaying its welcome if it were any longer, but it clocks in at a meager one hour and thirteen minutes. Not once does it feel gimmicky, and the scares are spaced out enough to lull you into a false sense of security. It’s not necessary for the villain to live in your face the entire runtime, although there are quite a few “blink and you’ll miss it” moments. We, as an audience, need time to breathe, but not too much. There’s a balance.
It isn’t Sinners, nor is it Weapons, but it doesn’t try to be. This is something new. It’s a simple, heart-warming short-story come to life via the talents of a magical quadruped. Since it premiered last year, it falls under last year’s rules. Sinners was by far the only five-star film of 2025 in my mind, meaning everything else registers as a four-star or below. This is very easily a four star film, or paws if you wish. Perfect for a fun, work-night quickie.
The “comments” section is at the very bottom of the page. That way, if you’re going to be a poon, I can try to sell you a book on the way down.
The Reverend’s Reads
To most, 1865 was an eye-opening year. The American Civil War was officially over and the soldiers fortunate enough to survive the bloody conflict returned home to collect the pieces of their former lives. To young Arizonan, Robert Jack, the fateful desert homecoming marked the end to all he once knew. Forgiveness is overrated. Death is final. Revenge, however, dances between the fine lines of mortality and eternity. Love always finds a way.
“Reading Jim Walker and the Redemption Hymn is equal parts quirky fun and riveting action. Cloud’s confident, entertaining voice draws the reader in like an old radio western: the perfect bite-sized story with a main character you’re ready to follow through every adventure he finds himself on. So, tune in next time…”
– Megan Stockton, author of Lovely, Dark & Deep
The history books would read that Jim Walker was brutally executed after the Battle of Goliad, but a few promises in the right ear blurred the contrast between blood and ink. Now an aging bounty hunter on the verge of retirement, his services are requested in the Northern Arizona Territory to solve the terrifying mystery of the Verde River Massacre. With guns from a local Deputy, courage from a saloon proprietor, and a deathbed confession from an all-too-familiar Medicine Woman, Jim sets off on what could be his final adventure. Will he lay the ghosts of his past to rest once and for all, or is he simply whistling his Redemption Hymn?
“Someone call DC and tell them this is how you write a female hero character!” – Lisa Lee Tone, Bibliophelia Templum
Angel Burns is a young firefighter with a shrouded history. During a routine night at work, she stumbles upon a demonic ceremony that brings her memories out of hiding – as well as her repressed supernatural powers. Angel soon learns her life was intended for things greater than extinguishing fires for mortals. Now on the payroll of the Vatican, Angel embarks upon an epic quest to protect the Gutenberg Bibles from evil. If successful, she will secure peace for generations. If she fails, the power of the ancient books will bestow an eternity of darkness upon all humanity!
Toby Liberman is nearing the end of his rope. After a fateful confrontation with his wife’s lover, he is chased into the woods only to be discovered by an unidentifiable creature. He is attacked and rendered unconscious. Upon waking at the scene of a gruesome triple homicide, Toby is arrested as the sole suspect and thrown into a jail cell with a strange man that knows way too much about his predicament. The stranger reveals to Toby that he now possesses the curse of the werewolf. Using his new-found strength to flee his captors, Toby begins to discover that things are not what they seem in the sleepy town of Twin Oaks, TX. Now hunted by law enforcement, as well as the town’s gun toting civilians, Toby seeks vengeance against his false accusers and embarks upon a quest to clear his name once and for all.
A Curse Beyond Comprehension. A Power Beyond Belief. A Girl Far From Home. Katie Liberman is your typical eighteen-year-old college student…or at least that’s what her family thinks. Picking up five years after the events of A Taste of Home, Katie has dropped out of school and embarked upon a dangerous quest to find Kurt Jimmerson, the New York City attorney responsible for her family’s werewolf curse. Unknown to her, the attorney’s grip on the ‘City That Never Sleeps’ is tighter than imagined and she’ll need any and all help available to be victorious. But… where do you find friends when you’re Far From Home?
Twin Oaks, Texas is at war! Taking place immediately after the Far From Home events in New York City, Katie Liberman has returned to rescue her birthplace from the clutches of her nemesis. As the paranormal battle of North vs. South rages in the shadows, the tiny town must decide to fight against the odds or become one with the darkness. Blood will be shed and only one will survive as the final battle of the Home Series concludes.
I know this is the part where I’m supposed to talk about the book, but I feel as though the synopsis needs its own preface to truly understand. 2023 was quite an eye-opening year! I began it by living my dream as a vintage steam locomotive fireman, but that dream was soon squashed thanks to my writing career. It won’t matter that you wrote your extreme horror offerings years ago and under a pen name. Also, it won’t matter that your publisher and author friends from days gone by express pleasantries and kind, nurturing words to your face, because they’ll clique-up and talk trash the minute you turn your back. F**k the biz, create. Create for art, not clicks. Click for love, not hate. Those are words true artists should have no issues living by, yet most seem to hide behind their keyboard shields, flinging ill-thought words of destruction toward once-trusted ears. Don’t pour something into everything; pour everything into something. Do it all by yourself if necessary. With any luck, 2024 will be the year of The Reverend. I’m not exactly sure what that means yet, but we’ll find out together. Anyway, here are a few short stories and poems I wrote as C. Derick Miller in 2023. I stole them from myself. Fair and square. Enjoy.
Poetry has always come naturally to me. Whether it is an expression of emotion toward someone I care about, or a display of humor pointed in the direction of those I loathe, it is my true outlet. Several of these works were written in a passenger seat while exploring the highways of the United States and somehow managed to survive “The Great Ex-Wife/Ex-Girlfriend Poetry Purge” of 2019. Others were penned during COVID-19 quarantine. Although it may not be the most epic poetry collection you’ve ever read, it all contains bits of blood and soul. You will feel something. Guaranteed.
“This profound collection of horror brings classic monsters into new light in the modern day” – B.L. Blankenship, God Walks The Dark Hills series.
The modern world is a crazy place. Worrying about childish politicians, empty grocery store shelves, and our pending membership to the “global disease of the week” club, it leaves very little time for the average reader to finish an entire novel. This is where Six from Five Seven: Short Stories from a Short Man comes in clutch! A story per day to keep the impending apocalypse away, with a single day left over to contemplate why you purchased this book in the first place. That sounds like an entertaining week when compared to the one you were destined to have regardless. What do a cursed husband, a privileged brat, a curious prostitute, a repressed savior, a vengeful son, and two hell-bound soldiers have in common? Their stories lie within the pages of this collection and invite you to tag along on their journeys of fate, redemption, and demise. When finished, you, dear reader, can hide this book inside your basement with the rest of those important documents you wished you’d never taken home. The FBI won’t be happy, but at least they’ll know you’re a cool person for owning a copy while conducting the raid. That must count for something, right? Let’s hope the judge thinks so!
Also, there’s a few other things not listed here that are floating around out there. Best of luck with the hunt.
Current Projects
Rev. Dare Cloud
Reverend · adjective. worthy of adoration or reverence. synonyms: sublime · sacred.
is a Dallas author, musician, and gonzo journalist. Some of his works include the controversial splatter-western Starving Zoe (written as C. Derick Miller), the Taste of Home trilogy, and the ongoing Jim Walker series. He is also the co-host of the American Justice Podcast and Senior Writer/Junior Producer for AtuA Productions LLC. His literary crushes are (of course) Hunter S. Thompson, J.D. Salinger, and Kevin Smith. Preach truths, toke jokes, and shoplift Amazon.
“You’ve got to press it on you You’ve just been thinking That’s what you do, baby Hold it down, Dare!” – Gorillaz
The Gonzo Wolf 
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