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Heel (The Good Boy)

Play trailer 2:07 Poster for Heel (The Good Boy) Mar 2026 1h 50m Mystery & Thriller Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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88% Tomatometer 65 Reviews 76% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
From Academy Award® nominated director Jan Komasa, HEEL is a twisted thriller that follows 19-year-old hooligan Tommy (Anson Boon), who revels in a life of drugs, parties, and violence. One night, on a bender with his reckless friends, he becomes separated from the group and is abducted by an unknown figure (Golden Globe® winner Stephen Graham). Though he is no stranger to inflicting violence, he is enraged and horrified when he wakes to find himself chained in the basement of the isolated suburban family home of Chris (Graham), his wife Kathryn (Academy Award® nominee Andrea Riseborough), and their young son Jonathan (Kit Rakusen). The family sets out to reform Tommy's unruly behavior, forcing him to comply with their relentless mind games or seek escape at any cost.

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Heel (The Good Boy)

Heel (The Good Boy)

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Critics Consensus

Having a maniacally fun time while wrestling with provocative questions about rehabilitation, Heel is a nutty thriller that has a surprising amount of method to its madness.

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Critics Reviews

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Wendy Ide Observer (UK) Mar 23
This is a curious, unsettling picture, with parallels to A Clockwork Orange: in this meeting of monsters, Chris is every bit as repellent and inhuman as Tommy at his rampaging worst. Go to Full Review
Mark Kermode Kermode and Mayo's Take (YouTube) Mar 23
An impressively nasty black comedy. Go to Full Review
Tim Robey Daily Telegraph (UK) Mar 20
2/5
The half-ideas at play here suggest a Yorgos Lanthimos twist on A Clockwork Orange, but that pitch could very easily have malfunctioned in exactly the ways this film does. Go to Full Review
Dionar Hidalgo Algo Más Que Cine Apr 19
8/10
A disturbing psychological fable anchored by Anson Boon's gripping, transformative performance, Good Boy unpacks the thin line between reform and abuse, even if its final act loses some of its unsettling precision. Go to Full Review
Whang Yee Ling The Straits Times (Singapore) Apr 13
4/5
You never know how the perverse story will next turn, nor where your sympathies should lie. Go to Full Review
Aaron Neuwirth We Live Entertainment Apr 1
7/10
There’s strong work going into this film, which is a great way to balance the oddity of what’s taking place here. Graham shows just how amazing he is as a performer, letting his character’s vulnerabilities lead him to both drastic and heartfelt actions. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Sammer A @sammer864 1d I like this movie, it's ultimately about Stockholm syndrome... my only problem with it is, I'm not sure, the makers know that it's!!! See more Justin D @Movie-Buff101 1d Gotta say this movie hooked me.... i shed some tears of sadness and joy. and the ending to me was beautiful. The director kinda leaves it up to you (spoilers ahead) but i got that he seen how much good it had actually done for him and straightened up his life, let him read books and be apart of a family for once in his life........and he was able to see that she was going downhill, doing coke, drunk off her knockers and wanted to disappear and tommy wanted to give her the same benefit he had gotten......... I only wish we had figured out who the previous guy was and what happened...... i was kinda thinking tommy himself had something to do with his death but we never get to find that out......only flaw of the movie in my opinion.....great acting, great story and great chemistry throughout...... See more Will D @Spike93 4d The family are as much prisoners as their captive, and it's their trauma and heartache that propels the film beyond the mere curiosity of its premise. See more Caz M @CazMartino May 3 This is quite the different kind of movie. So much so that I'm sure most people won't know how to feel about it. All in all it was well acted and a break from the usual Hollywood plot lines. Unique and interesting. See more Hugo S @Hugo_Shudder Apr 29 A conservative family imprisons a teenager in their basement after testifying to his anti-social behaviour on social media. The radical punishment serves the purpose of rehabilitating the boy, who has a particular inclination for atrocious acts of bullying. As the dynamics between the delinquent and the dysfunctional family evolve, the roles of perpetrator and victim unexpectedly blur. "Heel" is a psychological thriller that challenges viewers to question the morally grey boundaries of control and subjugation. Despite its inventive premise and relevant social commentary, the insufficient character development leaves the audience with more questions than answers. On the other hand, some of the characters' choices are deeply questionable, resulting in a narrative that is not always convincing. See more Keagan G. @RT45233322 Apr 26 Liked this movie, really made me think See more Read all reviews
Heel (The Good Boy)

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Heel (The Good Boy)

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Movie Info

Synopsis From Academy Award® nominated director Jan Komasa, HEEL is a twisted thriller that follows 19-year-old hooligan Tommy (Anson Boon), who revels in a life of drugs, parties, and violence. One night, on a bender with his reckless friends, he becomes separated from the group and is abducted by an unknown figure (Golden Globe® winner Stephen Graham). Though he is no stranger to inflicting violence, he is enraged and horrified when he wakes to find himself chained in the basement of the isolated suburban family home of Chris (Graham), his wife Kathryn (Academy Award® nominee Andrea Riseborough), and their young son Jonathan (Kit Rakusen). The family sets out to reform Tommy's unruly behavior, forcing him to comply with their relentless mind games or seek escape at any cost.
Director
Jan Komasa
Producer
Jeremy Thomas, Ewa Piaskowska, Jerzy Skolimowski
Screenwriter
Bartek Bartosik, Naqqash Khalid
Distributor
Magnolia Pictures
Production Co
Skopia Film, Recorded Picture Company
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 6, 2026, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 6, 2026
Runtime
1h 50m