The Gist
A happy couple go to a weekend retreat together but it is soon obvious that this weekend is what it seems to be… and neither are they.
The Review
There is no doubt that Hollywood has programmed audiences to see Artificial Intelligence is a bad thing. While movies like Short Circuit, Chappie and Wild Robot suggest the opposite films like the Terminator and The Matrix are just too powerful at portraying AI as the villain.
Even in recent months audiences have watched as AIs turned deadly in Subservience and AfrAId – even though I would argue that the AI in the latter would have a good case to argue that she wasn’t evil for what she did. That seed, that AI are evil and killers, plays right into the hands of first-time feature film screenwriter/director Drew Hancock’s new film Companion.
The film has a simple premise -a group of friends, Josh (Jack Quaid – Scream), Eli (Harvey Guillen – Werewolves Within) and Kat (Meegan Suri – It Lives Inside) go away for a weekend retreat. It is at a mansion in the woods owned by Kat’s married lover Sergey (Rupert Friend – Hitman: Agent 47) and along for the ride are Josh’s girlfriend Iris (Sophie Thatcher – Heretic) and Eli’s husband Patrick (Lukas Gage – Assassination Nation).
Josh is trying to make it a perfect weekend for Iris but there is obvious tension between Kat and Iris and it is soon revealed to the audience that the tension comes from the fact that Iris is a companion AI and it is something she finds repulsive. The suspicion on Iris only increases when one of the friends is brutally murdered.
Companion is a smarter film than a lot will give it credit for. On the surface it feels like a simple murder mystery but when you scratch the surface this film goes as deep as the Grand Canyon. This is not only a case of whodunnit this is also a case of why did they do it and who were they in cohorts with.
To his credit Hancock’s screenplay constantly keeps the audience guessing as he reveals the twists and turns as they are needed without ever tripping up the action storyline of the mystery itself. Believe it or not that is rare in modern day cinema as most thriller and horrors find dumb ways to trip themselves up these days.
The film also brilliantly explores some deep moral issues including how much power should humanity be allowed to have over a self-aware AI and is someone having a companion AI something that they should be judged for. While all of those questions are raised with the audience in a subtle way that will leave them asking questions the screenplays only weakness is when it tackles the topic of powerplays within couples. With that topic the subtleness seems to go out the window and Hancock lets it get in the way of what could have been a brilliant finale if it had been written differently.
What does work brilliantly with Companion are the performances of the cast. This is one of those films where all the performers brought their A-Game.
Jack Quaid is exceptional in a role that calls for the audience to both love and hate him at different times during the film. Sophie Thatcher is sensational in one of the most gruelling roles you are likely to see in cinema this year. From heart-wrenching emotional moments through to the films most horrific scenes Thatcher delivers. Grouped together with her recent performance in Heretic and it is easy to see why she needs to be considered one of the most promising actresses in Hollywood at the moment.
Also worth mentioning is the fact that Rupert Friend is virtually unrecognisable as he brilliantly plays a Russian ‘mobster’ while Harvey Guillen and Lukas Gage make the most of the film’s comedic moments. The pair of them make it possible to pull off Hancock’s mix of horror and comedy sensationally well.
The Verdict
Companion is a smartly written horror-thriller that will test and challenge a lot of people’s thoughts on AI. Taking the audience on a journey where they must try to work out whether AI can be trusted or not makes for an interesting plot that leaves some interesting themes to discuss after the film has finished. Add that to the fact that the performances are amazing and the mystery element works on all levels and you will find that Companion is a lot better than many will expect.
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