Companion (2025)

"Companion" stars Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, Harvey Guillén, and Rupert Friend.  Released on January 31, 2025, the film chronicles a chain of events surrounding a group of people at a lakeside estate.

The film was written and directed by Drew Hancock in his feature directorial debut.  Hancock is known for writing episodes of television shows like "The Wastelander", "The Mountain", "Blue Mountain State", and "My Dead Ex".  It doesn't come as much of a surprise that the horror genre didn't start the new year on the right foot, based on my experience.  "Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare" failed to make its twisted childhood character more of a nightmare than a dream, and Leigh Whannell's modern take on the "Wolf Man" lore was more of a subtle whimper than a howling success.  Although, I would say the "Wolf Man" reboot had more effort in its bold direction than a low-budget slasher film based on a boy who never grew up.  Fortunately, things started to turn around with Steven Soderbergh's "Presence", a refreshingly compelling ghost story that I surprisingly loved more than I thought I would, although expectations may vary.  With January closing its doors, we now have yet another horror film that's hoping to keep this streak going.  One that further emphasizes just how dangerous robots can be, especially ones programmed to serve your every desire.

"Companion" was the latest film to feature the involvement of Zach Cregger, a member of the comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know, who's made a surprisingly large impact in the horror genre with "Barbarian".  Regarding its commercial and financial success, "Barbarian" was the type of experience that warranted the theatrical treatment through its horror aspects and twists, the latter of which was hidden from its marketing.  While he was not taking the directorial helm for this movie, with the role now belonging to Drew Hancock, Cregger still had his fingerprints all over it regarding his approach to hiding the crucial surprises for its final cut.  That is, until its recent trailer showed what the film was actually about: a companion robot unleashing chaos.  But does it hinder my experience with this latest AI horror film?  More importantly, does it pack enough surprises in its plot to fulfill the desires of the genre's fans?

This is another movie that desires audiences to go into it blind and even talk about it without giving specific plot details away, similar to "Barbarian".  Of course, that includes me, despite seeing its recent trailer once.  So, for the sake of this review, I will do my best to express my thoughts on it without spoiling anything so that you can experience it yourself.  Regarding the film's plot, "Companion" tells a tale of a group of friends hosting a weekend getaway at a remote lakeside cabin, including young couple Josh (Quaid) and Iris (Thatcher).  However, the seemingly harmless getaway slowly descends into chaos when one of the friends reveals themselves as a companion robot who's self-aware of their existence.  This resulted in a series of events involving the group attempting to shut down the cyborg.  That's pretty much my abridged version of the story, as everything else makes the experience more enjoyable and surprisingly satisfying than the concept suggests.

While I wouldn't say its narrative programming is perfect, I can say that I had a really good time with "Companion".  It's a subtly demented and entertaining cat-and-mouse film that successfully puts a twisted spin on its traditional "love story".  "Companion" is often described as a horror film since it's clearly about a rogue sex robot who kills people, but I don't think that's the case regarding its seemingly "light-hearted" tone.  It does have a few horror elements, but it also has a surprising amount of humor thrown in there to emphasize the film's wild premise, so I guess you can say it's a "horror romance comedy".  Drew Hancock had plenty of hands to fill to ensure these elements were properly balanced enough to satisfy those looking for some terrifying fun that also functions as a "date night" movie.  Considering this is his first time directing a feature film, Hancock's vision could wind up in either direction.  Fortunately, Hancock managed to keep this genre balance from malfunctioning too early, especially the effective dark comedy, even though the "horror" part of the film lacked any frightful functions in the system.  Not only that, but Drew Hancock provided another horror movie that's sublimely shot regarding the production designs and Eli Born's wide-angle cinematography.
 
However, what really surprised me is that it doesn't follow the traditional slasher horror blueprint we've seen in similar movies, including ones involving rogue robots.  If you're hoping for it to be a cheap "Terminator" rip-off that features a sex robot killing victims in gruesome ways, I must warn you now that "Companion" isn't that type of film.  Yes, it does have a companion robot killing people, but it restrained itself from getting too over-the-top with its brutality.  Instead, "Companion" focuses more on a love story gone wrong.  Equipped with some surprising twists and wit, Hancock's screenplay puts a clever spin on an abusive relationship characterized by control and its theme involving self-independence, providing a nuanced perspective on this dangerous relationship.  I would say more about what I mean, but it's best to find that out for yourself.  Rather than playing with the usual horror tricks regarding the violence and genre formula, the script relies solely on its surprises, humor, and thematic material to depict a flawed relationship descending into chaos.  It may not work for everyone since the film is more bizarre than scary, but "Companion" marks another compelling case of humanity being more frightening than a rogue robot, especially characters obsessed with control.

The film also marks another showcase of the cast carrying the project through their performances, including the main leads.  Sophie Thatcher continues her path as one of this generation's "scream queens", which I am here for after she impressed me with her roles in "The Boogeyman" and last year's "Heretic".  "Companion" sees Thatcher portray Iris, a young woman questioning her identity.  Of course, if you've seen the new poster of the film, you would've already figured out who Iris really is.  Regardless, Sophie Thatcher delivered another satisfying performance that showcased Iris's inner anxiety, concern, and perseverance, along with some appropriate comedic timing.  Jake Quaid was also consistently entertaining as Josh, whose questionable motives unraveled themselves as the movie progressed.  Quaid is another actor who continues to impress me through his television and film roles, especially "The Boys" and 2022's "Scream", so here's hoping he can repeat that success with his leading role in the upcoming "Novocaine".  Harvey Guillén and Lukas Gage also provided a few amusing moments as Eli and Patrick, respectively, with the latter actor progressing down the horror path after appearing in last year's "Smile 2".

Overall, "Companion" is a worthy and fiendishly fun contraption that satisfies almost all my genre desires.  Despite being labeled as a horror film, it doesn't pack in a lot of scares in its system to lure in those needing a terrifying treat, meaning this would likely be another movie that'll divide audiences depending on their expectations.  However, if you go into this film not knowing it's a horror movie, you might be treated with a well-shot and satisfyingly twisted depiction of love characterized by control that's as intelligent as an AI robot.  Regarding its enjoyable cast, Hancock's direction and screenplay, effective humor, and solid cinematography, "Companion" is another surprisingly good addition to the horror genre, which is enough to compensate for the other disappointing ones I watched beforehand.  If you're interested, I'd recommend you go into it blind without watching the trailers for a more "pleasurable" experience.

B+