Summary
Who’s a Good Boy? follows the teen comedy formula to a scarily predictable degree, with every clichéd plot beat imaginable and the standard schoolboy humor. But the film does have its moments, and there is something comforting about knowing where the story is going, I guess.
We review the Netflix film Who’s a Good Boy? which does not contain spoilers.
Netflix’s teen comedy film, Who’s a Good Boy? plays out like a Mexican version of the classic sex comedy American Pie. Lead protagonist, Chema (Sebastian Dante), is your standard awkward virgin, who wants nothing more than to pop his cherry before graduating. All his classmates appear to be getting some, but poor, geeky Chema feels like the odd one out. As you’d expect, this raunchy comedy follows the usual clichés of the genre down to the very letter, but it still works as a bit of harmless fun nevertheless, with enough redeeming qualities to keep viewers entertained to the end credits.
It’s the first day of school and Chema meets with his best friends Hugo (Diego Melendez) and Ruben (Harold Azuara) to discuss their chances with the ladies for this their senior year. First up is the Christmas party and this endearing trio needs to lock in dates ASAP for the biggest night of their lives. Chema has his eyes on Eli, but his friends joke that she is practically his cousin and she’s out of his league anyway. Ruben is pretty much taken for, whilst Hugo is not picky whatsoever. Chema’s best friends have both lost their virginities and Chema feels like he’s falling behind.
Even Chema’s teachers are aware of his lousy reputation and label him as a softie (el suave). And he is a proper pushover, accepting his usual cat litter cleaning responsibilities without hesitation. Chema is then asked to take on one more duty, but this one may be worth his time. A teacher asks Chema to show the new kid around, who happens to be Claudia (Sirena Ortiz), a beautiful bombshell from Acapulco. Chema falls madly in love with this girl from the off and happily fulfills her every wish. He offers to drive her to and from school, as well as attending yoga and pole dancing classes with her, which aren’t cheap. He’s obsessed with the newbie and will literally do whatever she requests.
Unfortunately, Chema quickly finds himself in the friend zone, with everyone at school referring to him as Claudia’s lapdog. Cool kid Sebas (Yankel Stevan) seizes his opportunity and makes his move while Chema’s world falls apart all around him. He’s alienating his closest friends and family members and has upset his potential love interest Eli with this unhealthy infatuation with Claudia. It’s quite easy to see where all this is heading, and the formulaic comedy doesn’t deviate from the teen rom-com structure, not even once.
Everything’s just a little too obvious, which is a shame, as there are many positives. The family subplot makes for a heartening addition to the overarching story. Whilst the camaraderie between Chema and his closest friends hits the right level of cutesy in a short period of time. There are a handful of laugh-out-loud moments too, although these are your staple teen comedy jokes that have been done to death many times before. Yet they stand out as highlights in this movie.
Overall, Who’s a Good Boy? just about works as a standard teen comedy, with enough risqué humor to appease the teenage masses and enough romance to keep viewers interested until the end. There’s nothing new or original to this Netflix feature length though, and the predictable plotting makes this an entirely forgettable offering. American Pie felt fresh in 1999, but that film franchise is over twenty years old now, and the genre deserves reinventing, not just carbon-copying for the current generation.
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