‘Companion’ Review – Jack Quaid Makes A Deadly Friend In Sophie Thatcher
January was disappointing but there is one movie people are talking about – or they want everyone to – and giving high marks. Now, that doesn’t mean Companion is any good, just that it is tiptoeing over a very low bar with a bare minimum of competition making no effort.
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In the film, Jack Quaid stars as Josh, an awkward guy who takes his new girlfriend Iris (Sophie Thatcher, Heretic) to a remote, scenic getaway owned by some shady rich Russian named Sergey (Rupert Friend). He is kind of suspicious, and certainly slimy, but nothing to worry about in the end. Why? He doesn’t matter in the long run aside from being another body for the count.
The real substance, which the trailer gives away, is that Iris isn’t human, and like Pinnochio or Swamp Thing, she wants to be. Sadly, she is a robot – yes, programmed to feel, think, and behave exactly like a person would, but Iris is artificial, nonetheless. This isn’t a problem for Josh, or anyone involved, at first, though that’s until the killing starts. Things only get worse from there as Iris’s nescience and illusions about her existence are broken one at a time.
If you haven’t guessed by now, Companion fancies itself a member of the same caste as Ex Machina except that it’s more of a comedy – and a screwball one at that. It might remind you of Dumb & Dumber or Wes Craven’s Deadly Friend at certain moments.
This is refreshing in one respect. The film was produced by New Line Cinema, the House Craven and Freddy Built, and it’s a long-awaited return to form for the indie horror label I wasn’t expecting. They used to produce movies that blended satire, horror, and social commentary like this all the time, and it made them very profitable and influential. However, this time around, they only get so far off that mixture which was a product of timing as much as cinematic alchemy.
Companion is also produced by the team behind Barbarian, which includes the latter’s writer and director Zach Cregger. Although that film was a highlight for horror fans in 2022, it was a mixed bag. There were a few interesting ideas, but they could have come from three different movies, and they crashed into a bizarre, random twist that made no sense. (Cregger also doesn’t know anything about Detroit, but I digress.)
The former’s writer/director, Drew Hancock, avoids those pitfalls and crafts a piece that is more coherent in the sense it’s easier to follow. While still shifting gears with a moderate risk of whiplash, the twists don’t come from out of nowhere. Even going in blind, you can probably guess where the plot is going based on a few subtle cues like when Josh asks Iris the weather or tells her authoritatively to sleep.
It might surprise you to learn Iris is the real main character and portrayed as the biggest victim of them all in the entire cast. She is the POV for the audience, the narrator who bookends things and Sophie Thatcher does a great job humanizing her. That sort of works against the movie when she has to fight back.
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As a machine with settings that restrict her potential, I expected her to have increased speed, strength, and formidable nth level of intelligence once she got her hands on her controls. That doesn’t happen. Like a normal person, she uses her wits and some comedic chicanery to get out of one sticky situation after another.
Iris is still just a girl despite being a top-of-the-line AI that proves to be resourceful. Her resolve isn’t quite at girl-boss levels, but she deals with the same threat. Her enemies are the usual greed, toxic masculinity, and the gaslighting that comes with them. These themes aren’t too obnoxious or overpowering, but they are in play. And Iris’s only option to free herself is smashing them.
Other critics consider Companion the best movie of the dreaded January doldrums. I’ll repeat that is not a high bar by any means, and therefore no masterful achievement. You might not remember this film by the end of the year, but you might hear about it by those who wish to trumpet its message of female empowerment.
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Companion
PROS
- Performances, especially Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid
- Colorful set design and opening/closing credit graphic designs
CONS
- Typical "straight men are bad" messaging
- Tries to be 'Ex Machina' if Wes Craven directed it, but doesn't always hit the mark on that
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