This text incorporates main spoilers for “Companion.”
Warner Bros. has delivered maybe the primary actually nice dialog piece film of 2025 with “Companion.” Directed by Drew Hancock and produced by the identical sickos who introduced us “Barbarian,” the story of a lady realizing that she’s truly a robotic constructed to serve just isn’t solely very entertaining, however leaves viewers with a lot to consider. It additionally works as a fairly surprising companion piece (no pun meant) to Spike Jonze’s 2013 sci-fi gem “Her.” Whereas the latter maintains no less than some optimism relating to our tech-dominated future, the previous just isn’t excited by such hopeful ideas. It is superb how a lot can change in a decade.
Hancock’s movie takes place throughout a weekend getaway with Josh (Jack Quaid) bringing his companion robotic Iris (Sophie Thatcher) to get higher acquainted along with his mates. Issues flip bloody when Iris goes haywire. When she is knowledgeable that she’s a robotic, her will to reside results in much more chaos. “Companion,” which /Movie’s Chris Evangelista known as “the primary nice movie of 2025,” gives a pessimistic view of the longer term, significantly because it pertains to humanity’s relationship with know-how.
Josh, an entitled white man if ever was one, takes Iris without any consideration. He makes use of her. He takes out his worldly frustrations on her in a f****d up, mentally abusive approach. He treats her like a factor, regardless of her being roughly alive. Within the quickly evolving future promised to us by generative AI, do robots that supply companionship appear all that far off? Greater than that, can people be trusted with such know-how?
The film makes it clear that these robots solely unleash humanity’s worst instincts. They’re tied up in basements. They’re used for goal observe. It is a pointed little bit of commentary on the ugliness of humanity. It additionally means that know-how goes for use to interchange actual human connection within the not-too-distant future. That feels inevitable. It is a type of sci-fi films that feels so near a actuality we’re veering in direction of that it is laborious to not think about it in a significant approach.
Companion and Her tackle related ideas with very completely different outlooks
Circling again to “Her,” Jonze’s Oscar-winning movie takes place within the close to future and follows Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a candy, quiet man who’s lately divorced and lonely. He turns into intrigued by a brand new, superior laptop working system that’s like Apple’s Siri on steroids. He quickly will get acquainted along with his OS “Samantha” (Scarlett Johansson), who’s remarkably human regardless of merely being a voice in his laptop. The 2 ultimately strike up an unlikely romantic relationship, rife with lots of the identical joys and points two people would have. It additionally, naturally, carries with it some distinctive challenges.
Jonze’s movie could not be extra completely different than “Companion.” Not like “Companion,” it isn’t a horror movie. On the identical time, each movies are partaking with the exact same idea of a future the place human and AI companionship is, roughly, an accepted norm. Jonze’s view is that these relationships, like several relationship, include good and unhealthy. Theodore is on no account devoid of points, however he isn’t a strolling pink flag like Josh is in “Companion.” That is maybe the most important distinction. Theodore is a person able to treating a relationship, even whether it is with a pc, with respect. Josh is not.
/Movie’s unique evaluation of “Her” known as it a “heat, considerate imaginative and prescient of future love.” Jonze means that these AI avenues for companionship can have their place, however that they need to on no account be a alternative for precise human interplay. Additionally they actually should not be handled like s*** simply because they don’t seem to be “actual” within the conventional sense. It takes a extra impartial, bordering on hopeful view of what the close to future can seem like within the age of know-how we won’t probably hope to halt.
Within the years since that movie’s launch, we have been by way of a pandemic, an rebellion within the U.S. capitol, the introduction of generative AI instruments to most of the people, and additional division in society. In that approach, “Her” virtually looks like a attainable imaginative and prescient of the longer term we have since deserted.
Companion and Her each agree on one key ingredient of the longer term
To not state the plain right here, however “Companion” and “Her” are very completely different films. But, they really feel like they make for an ideal double characteristic, providing us people two glimpses at a future that’s not directly, form, or kind, coming our approach. We will not cease AI. We will not cease the notion of AI companions turning into a factor. What we are able to do is resolve how we wish to deal with what’s coming. Perhaps that will not be as nightmarish as James Cameron’s “The Terminator,” nevertheless it’s beginning to really feel prefer it may get dicey.
These films each agree that robotic companions are inevitable. A decade and alter in the past, Jonze believed there was a optimistic(ish) model of what that may seem like. Within the yr 2025, Hancock suggests that almost all of humanity is ugly and cannot be trusted with such know-how, nevertheless it’s coming anyway so issues are simply going to get bizarre — and maybe bloody. In that approach, “Companion” looks like an in depth cousin to Gerard Johnstone’s “M3GAN.” Unhappy to say, by way of fashionable eyes, “Her” looks like silly hopefulness. Perhaps that is simply me.
Both approach, these two films really feel like they’re having a dialog with each other — an essential dialog at that. Greater than that, it is a reminder that style filmmaking is invaluable to the canon of cinema. Horror and sci-fi are extra than simply low cost thrills. This is hoping Hancock’s imaginative and prescient is extra of a cautionary story than a predictor of what is to come back.
“Companion” is in theaters now.