Companion Review – The Things we do for Love
In Companion, three friends bring their partners to a party in a secluded cabin. When you add jealousy, greed, power and control into the mix, it’s not long before the killing starts
So, how would you design your perfect Companion? Would it be someone attractive, that always listened to you, never argued or disagreed and pretty much did everything you said? And interestingly, how intelligent would you make them? Most people including myself, would find the prospect of that much control boring and uninspired. Still, some crave that kind of power and control in their relationships and these are some of the themes explored in the 2025 romantic horror thriller ‘Companion’.
Companion is written and directed by Drew Hancock and produced by the team behind 2022’s Barbarian. Much like that movie, you sense something is not quite right from the outset, and we witness a fun weekend away turn into a bloody crime scene.
The movie is billed as ‘A different kind of Love Story’ and it most definitely is! We first meet Josh (Jack Quaid) and Iris (Sophie Turner) through a flashback to their first meeting and it’s a very cute ‘love at first sight’ scenario. But simmering just under the surface, is the feeling that something is not quite right. Now at this time, it can’t really be a spoiler to anyone to point out Iris is a robot. While not explicitly stating it, the producers went out of their way to show this, both in the trailers and even on the main poster for the film.
As someone who loves watching trailers, I do think they gave away a little too much in the trailer. But to be honest, on this occasion, it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the film. And there were more than a few extra ‘special’ moments which more than made up for it.
Due to the incredibly advanced robotics on show (Im talking Terminator level) and the completely voice-controlled self-drive cars, I believe Companion is set in the future, even though no date is specified. I’d wager it’s the not-too-distant future as it’s still a very recognisable world.
Josh takes Iris away for a weekend to meet his friends having a party in a secluded cabin in the woods. On arrival. they discover rather than a ‘cabin’, it is a mansion with a pool and all other flashy amenities, owned by a rich Russian named Sergey, played by Rupert Friend. After introductions are made and the party gets underway, tensions and cracks start to show. After a shocking incident involving Iris, secrets are revealed and all hell breaks loose.
Companion was one of our Most Wanted Movies for January- Check out the others here
Companion isn’t a complicated movie nor is it trying to be particularly clever. What it does do is re-open the debate around existence and being alive. As human beings, everything we think or feel is via signals sent from the supercomputer in our heads -the brain. The brain tells us if something is hot or cold, pleasant or disgusting, whether we are in love and carries the memories of our life and experiences.
We could reasonably ask then how is that different from a robot receiving signals about whether something is hot, cold, painful or sad. And if you program an advanced computer to love you unconditionally, regardless of what you do, even if you are causing them harm, it would be just as difficult to break that programming to protect itself. Much like some people in abusive or violent relationships stay or keep going back because their brains tell them they need that person.
There are other themes explored in the film including greed, control, violence and self-acceptance but rather than being another tale of a killer robot gone rogue, the real story is of Iris’s awakening and journey of discovery. Learning about the evils of the world and breaking free from the limits she was created with. It becomes a story of survival and questions how we define being alive and living. Sophie Thatcher does a fantastic job in this role portraying a robot that believes its humans convincingly. All the small mannerisms that a robot might mimic as human behaviour are there but they always seem a bit off, which reminds us she isn’t ‘real’.
Companion is billed as a romantic horror movie but I would definitely change that as there were no scary moments in this movie. I’d classify it as a Sci-fi romantic thriller. There are many horror movies that unintentionally end up being funny because of how ludicrous some of the scenarios or images are.
This film has lots of laughs and gags but they are all built in intentionally. The filmmakers here want us to have fun, want us to laugh and enjoy proceedings while witnessing some brutal deaths. While some of the violence is shocking and gory, it’s nowhere near the level of a slasher film and while the violence is shown, it’s obvious it’s not the point or focus of the film.
Three of the things humanity is obsessed with are Creation (I made you), Control (Do what I say) and Unconditional love and loyalty. If you’re a Christian (or are familiar with the bible) you’ll know that these were elements that God tried unsuccessfully to establish with mankind. But even if you;re not religious, you can see the same trends with parents towards children. They want to make you, tell you what to do and receive unconditional love from you, and any deviation from that is seen as betrayal. It seems we are doomed to face the same challenges with our Robot/A.I relations in the future. Everything we make will most likely at some point want to do things its way.
Companion had shades of Blade Runner in it with a robot believing it’s a human as well as a feel of the Terminator movies, in at least two scenes. But unlike those films, this is designed more as a fun, lighter experience that explores serious and interesting themes. All done while not taking itself too seriously and allowing the audience to have a laugh and enjoy themselves. I came out feeling like I’d watched a really good episode of Black Mirror but without the dark sinking feeling of dread you normally get at the end of the episode and to me, that’s a good thing!
Companion hits cinemas screens on January 31st
Responses