Sophie Thatcher as Iris in Companion. Photo courtesy of Warner Brothers Pictures.
I’ll be honest. I wasn’t expecting anything remarkable going into this movie. I mostly went to see two of my favorite actors in a movie together as I’m sure many a student at San Luis Obispo High School has. I was immediately endeared to American actors Sophie Thatcher and Jack Quaid by their performances in “Yellowjackets” and “The Boys” respectively and have followed their careers loyally ever since.
This isn’t the first time I have gone to see a movie for this reason. Previously I went and sat in the exact same theater to see “We Live In Time.” But where “We Live In Time” used the star power of its leads (Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh) to disguise an otherwise middling couple hours of film, “Companion” fully utilizes the potential of its leads to craft a timely and well executed tale of empowerment and revenge that is all too relevant in the age of artificial intelligence and women’s rights being rolled back.
“[The movie looked like a] thought provoking romance that quickly turns into a thriller,” said senior Molly Baskt.
Now, at this point in the review If you haven’t seen the movie yet, I implore you to do so as the following sections delve into spoilers.
“Companion” tells the story of Josh (Jack Quaid) and Iris (Sophie Thatcher) as they stay at a secluded cabin in the woods with a small group of their friends. All seems (mostly) normal until their host makes sexual advances on Iris leading her to kill him out of desperation.
A traumatized Iris returns to the house still covered in blood at which point things begin to unravel. It is revealed that unbeknownst to Iris, Josh has installed a mod into her system that increases her aggression and Kat (one of josh’s friends) has pushed Sergey (their host) into making a move on her.
Also in the dark are Patrick and Teddy, a couple and Josh’s other two friends. We find out that the entire trip has been an elaborate set up for Iris to kill Sergey so Josh and Kat can steal his money while Patrick and Teddy are merely there to serve as witnesses to corroborate the story.
At this point the aforementioned couple, while initially shocked and horrified, eventually manage to rationalize the murder by agreeing that Sergey was a horrible person but demand a cut of the money.
It is here that we are thrown a major curveball. Patrick is also a robot. Because of this Josh and Kat initially refuse to give him an equal share of the money but relent when Teddy threatens to go to the cops. And during all of this, Iris has been tied up after being given the devastating news that she is in fact a robot and has been used.
The story that follows contains many twists and turns that keep it fresh, and has a well written story which doesn’t overindulge in its violence.
“These are the most important elements of a good horror movie,” said junior Luca Petterson.
It is here that I want to stop and analyze why this movie works for me, starting with the differences between Josh and Iris’ relationship and Teddy and Patrick’s Relationship. Josh and Teddy are both in long term relationships with their “companions” but they go about doing so very differently. What it boils down to is this, Josh hides the fact that Iris is a robot from her because he doesn’t see her as a person. Teddy hides this fact from Patrick because he does.
Patrick and Teddy have been together for years. Patrick is an older model but even though he could, Teddy refuses to replace him. He truly cares for Patrick. He doesn’t tell Patrick he’s a robot because to him, he isn’t. He’s the love of his life.
Iris on the other hand is a new addition to Josh’s life. She was brought into his life merely to satisfy his sexual desires and to execute this plot. She is quite literally a rental. Josh isn’t willing to commit to real love emotionally or financially. He’s just borrowing Iris for his own selfish needs. It was never about love because there never was any. She is just a tool to Josh. This is further reinforced later in the movie when out of frustration Josh resets Teddy solely to serve as his henchman, a killing machine.
What makes this movie for me is the small details like these that were placed throughout the movie. Another example is how even before it is ever stated in the movie that Iris is a robot, there are many subtle hints that point towards it. The most obvious of these is how her makeup remains perfectly intact even as she showers.
And while she is not married, I find the placement of a ring on the fourth finger of Iris’ RIGHT hand rather than the left to be interesting as the left is where an actual ring would traditionally be placed. It’s a very subtle way of showing that while the relationship Iris shares with Josh may superficially resemble real or “true” love, that is indeed not the case. What they have is a mere reflection of happiness.
It is also worth noting that when Josh forces Iris to hold her hand over a candle during his monologue about how she has never felt real pain (ultimately leading to her entire forearm being burned down to her metal skeleton), it is her right arm that is raised, the one with the “false” ring. The ring is discarded along with the charred flesh, unshackling her from Josh and from her mistreatment by his hands.
The film also uses many horror conventions flawlessly including a Chekhov’s Gun (an object or detail present in a scene to hint towards its importance later in the story) following the rule of three in the form of the wine bottle opener.
Overall the film combines elements of “Her” (2013), “Westworld” (1973), “Terminator” (1984), and “The Stepford Wives” (1975) to masterful effect. It utilizes these concepts in a way that is both refreshingly modern and instantly timeless.
“Many movies cover the scary robot uprising trope, and ‘Companion’ spins it on its head, having us sympathize with the robot instead,” said senior Anika Richard.
If you have not seen Companion already I cannot recommend it enough.
