“Companion”: Popcorn Sci-fi For Your Movie Date

Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid star in this little science fiction film with blood and robots.

Summary

Josh and his girlfriend Iris join a small group of friends on a weekend getaway. The apparently innocent reunion takes a turn when Iris’ real identity is brought to light, challenging all the plans for the trip.

A Romance Gone Wrong

There seemed to be so much hype around Companion at the time it was released that I was impatient to watch it. However, I did not find anything remarkable about it. 

The film starts with what seems to be a happy couple, Iris and Josh, heading for a weekend out of town. Some friends of Josh have invited them both to their lake house, but Iris is a little apprehensive about the whole thing: she suspects Josh’s friends do not like her, even though she does not understand why.

While having a walk the next morning, the owner of the lake house attempts to sexually assault Iris, and she accidentally kills him trying to defend herself. This incident reveals the truth: Iris is not a human but a companion robot. She is being rented by Josh, who can control her emotions and intelligence with an app on his phone. And she has been brought there to carry out her owner’s plans.

The project in general is pretty entertaining; it combines science fiction and thriller with some horror (or at least, some deaths and blood) and has good performances. Sophie Thatcher, who appeared last year in Heretic, is charming in the leading role, and Jack Quaid accompanies her just fine.

Robots and Humans

There is a feeble feminist undertone, because Iris has to free herself from an evil man that controls her, but it is not too much on the nose to be annoying. In fact, the most interesting topic to explore, the destruction of real human connections in favor of technology, is barely given any space. The project is made just for the sake of entertainment, which is not necessarily a bad thing but feels like a waste in this particular case.

On and on, the story is predictable, and it brings nothing we have never seen before in the genre. That is why I do not understand the hype: it is a pretty standard movie. In a normal year, I do not think it would have made any noise at all.

What Happened to This Genre?

Just like I said when I reviewed AfrAId back in January, this could have been a Black Mirror episode. Iris’s style even reminded me of the episode “Nosedive”, that one starring Bryce Dallas Howard. I am just now realizing how high the series left the bar for science fiction, despite the last seasons being kind of trash. Whatever movies try to do today, Black Mirror did it better and in just an hour-long episode.

Besides, the heart of Black Mirror was exploring the impact the futuristic technological advances had on the characters and how they robbed them of their most basic human traits. Most of the episodes did not show any explicit violence, but were disturbing as hell. I remember staring at the empty screen for a while after finishing some of them. I have not seen a show or movie that comes close to what the series achieved back in the day. And Companion is no exception to that.

But leaving quality and depth aside, sci-fi does not have the same impact anymore, because the kind of technology that existed in those dystopian realities is already here. AI is already happening, and the companion robots feel like something that could be only a couple of years away. That fact takes me out of the fiction, and it is a big reason why I do not enjoy the genre anymore. Even if something with Black Mirror quality came out today, I do not think I would be interested.

Critical Reception and Box Office Performance

Despite my lack of enthusiasm, general audiences seemed to have enjoyed the project, ensuring a good reception. In terms of financials, Companion has reached $36.500.000 at the worldwide box office, with a production budget of only $10.000.00.

I remain unimpressed. If you are looking for something light to watch on a Sunday afternoon, Companion will do the job, but it is in no way a must-watch.