Director
Gene Stupnitsky
(Feature film debut)

Starring
Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams, Brady Noon, Molly Gordon and Midori Francis

If nothing else, at least GOOD BOYS takes a risk by distributing its more than familiar dose of mainstream comedy through the words and actions of a fun size cast.

Sixth-graders Max (Jacob Tremblay), Lucas (Keith L. Williams) and Thor (Brady Noon) have been best pals for most of their childhood and enjoy doing practically everything together. Their closeness faces its biggest test yet when Max makes plans to kiss his school crush at an upcoming party he’s been exclusively invited to. The boys go to extreme measures to warm up for the big event, which quickly spirals out of control and catapults them into a world filled with some very adult possessions, practices and problems.

Not only are the three lead performers of GOOD BOYS fun size, but so is the film’s plot. Despite its story being inescapably unimaginative and struggling to offer much more than an obvious trajectory, this comedy’s few winning features are enough to keep it consistently funny and entertaining throughout.

One of these winning features is the juxtaposition of how our seemingly precocious pre-teen protagonists observe themselves and behave while we simultaneously perceive just how naive Max, Lucas and Thor truly are. They might be potty-mouthed, consider themselves young men and show an eagerness to do what (they think) other men do, but their clear lack of life experience as adults is constantly endearing to witness and is a solid indicator that GOOD BOYS has utilised its premise to its full potential. Another definite winning feature combo are the sterling performances from the three young leads and the camaraderie of their characters. There’s no doubt that the child cast of this Hollywood production match the energy exuded in their physical performances with the enthusiasm and sharpness of their dialogue delivery. They not only hold their own, but give a lesson as to how it’s done to some of their adult counterparts in similar films over recent years. Owing purely to these winning features of the film, GOOD BOYS doesn’t allow itself to entirely depend on the screenplay and its comical scenarios to entertain. That is especially very fortunate for those of you who have seen the trailer, which of course reveals all of the film’s best laughs.

3 stars 

Viewer Discretion
MA15+ (strong crude sexual humour and coarse language)

Trailer
GOOD BOYS

Moviedoc thanks Universal Pictures for the invite to the screening of this film.

GOOD BOYS is released in cinemas throughout Australia from September 19th, 2019.

Review by Leigh for Moviedoc
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