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By Lauren Bradshaw
Lauren’s Review

Last week, I saw one of the worst movies of 2025. This week, I saw what will assuredly be one of the best. Written and directed by Drew Hancock, Companion is a clever sci-fi thriller with so many twists and turns you won’t know what’s going to happen next; think EX-MACHINA meets READY OR NOT. So it’s best you know as little as possible before seeing it yourself (even try to avoid the trailers… and the rest of my review). Its genre-bending script—a combination of comedy, murder/slasher, and futuristic mystery—is perfectly paced and allows the brilliant ensemble cast to stretch their acting muscles.

The movie follows Josh (Jack Quaid) and his girlfriend Iris (Sophie Thatcher), who take a weekend trip to a remote lake house for a meet-up with friends. Iris is worried about making a good impression on the group, especially since she has had a bad experience with one member before. Could it be that they don’t like her because she is actually a Companion robot? She was created to be unwaveringly devoted to her boyfriend’s every need… and I mean every need; I can see how that may give some people the ick. But Josh assures her if she can just push her feelings to the side and smile/act happy, everything will be okay. Unfortunately, I think we all know everything is not going to be okay… especially when the house’s owner Sergey (Rupert Friend), pushes Iris to her breaking point.

With her visceral performances in Yellowjackets, Heretic, and now Companion, Thatcher has become one of my favorite actresses and Hollywood’s go-to girl when it comes to badasses that aren’t going to put up with any man’s :ahem: mess. Her electric performance jumps off the screen, welcoming you to root for her from the second you meet her. Quaid, on the other hand, is at his absolute douchiest (compliment). It’s hard to think of many other actors that can so quickly code shift between adorkable guy-next-door and punchable prick. Between this and SCREAM, he’s starting to show he’s a little too good at hiding a manipulative maniac behind a charming smile (also a compliment).

More than anything, Companion is a provocative thrill ride, with much to say on romantic power dynamics and reclaiming free will, as well as the dangers of artificial intelligence. I was most intrigued by the exploration of relationships and how you may lose a little (or a lot) of yourself when you are with your partner. Iris’s co-dependency issues may have been a result of her operating system, but as time passes, she discovers some agency and that she has a choice over allowing Josh to keep controlling her (in more ways than one); she is no longer the docile, smile-happy little lady he wants her to be, she has some fight in her. Admittedly, if you also just want to turn your brain off and have fun at the movies, you will enjoy the film’s revenge-driven plot, which expertly balances humor, romance… and blood.

Companion is a prime example of a movie I can guarantee you’ve never seen before. Just when you think you are starting to understand what is going on, the script will find a way to bamboozle you once again. And with its tight 90-minute runtime, the movie never feels like its overstaying its welcome.

My Review: A

LAUREN BRADSHAW grew up in Courtland, graduated from Southampton Academy and double-majored in foreign affairs and history at the University of Virginia. She lives in the Washington, D.C., area and can be reached at flickchickdc@gmail.com.