"Like Alex Garland's 'Ex Machina' and Jonathan Glazer's 'Under the Skin', 'Companion' uses a juicy science-fiction premise – in this case, if we could hire robotic lovers, how might we treat them? – as the pretext for a dark parable about male manipulation and coercion of women," said Robbie Collin in The Daily Telegraph.
Iris (Sophie Thatcher) is a "pretty, softly spoken" robot who has been programmed to provide companionship for her "midwit" boyfriend Josh (Jack Quaid). Together, they head off to spend a weekend with friends at a remote lake house owned by a Russian tycoon (Rupert Friend), where Iris goes violently rogue. There is a "wonderful delicacy to Thatcher's performance, as the actress expertly toggles between uncanny and natural from moment to moment", and the film is a treat – "an unabashed whoop-out-loud romp: one of those films in which horrible things happen constantly to horrible people, as the moral arc of the universe bends itself around to kick the backsides of everyone involved".
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Today's political cartoons - May 4, 2025Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - deportation, Canadian politeness, and more
-
5 low approval cartoons about poll numbersCartoons Artists take on fake pollsters, shared disapproval, and more
-
Deepfakes and impostors: the brave new world of AI jobseekingIn The Spotlight More than 80% of large companies use AI in their hiring process, but increasingly job candidates are getting in on the act
-
A journey into Egypt's western desertThe Week Recommends There is much more to be found in Egypt when straying from the usual tourist destinations
-
Splash! A Century of Swimming and Style: full of 'revelations and surprises'The Week Recommends The Design Museum's sweeping collection of all things swimming contains hidden depths
-
The Ugly Stepsister: 'slyly funny' body-horror take on CinderellaThe Week Recommends Emilie Blichfeldt's cutting Norwegian revision of the classic fairy tale leaves no character unscathed
-
John Boyne shares his favourite booksThe Week recommends The bestselling novelist picks works by Tobias Wolff, Christos Tsiolkas, and Agatha Christie
-
The Brightening Air: a 'gripping' family dramaThe Week Recommends Connor McPherson's Chekhovian drama about a pair of siblings whose lives are upended by the arrival of their relations
-
6 isolated homes for hermitsFeature Featuring a secluded ranch on 560 acres in New Mexico and a home inspired by a 400-year-old Italian farmhouse in Colorado
-
Allies at War: a 'revelatory' account of the Second World WarThe Week Recommends Tim Bouverie's 'old-fashioned diplomatic history' explores the often fraught relationship between world powers
-
The Friend: a 'graceful' but flawed dog movieThe Week Recommends Naomi Watts stars in 'intelligent' adaptation of Sigrid Nunez's book about a 'problematic pooch'
