There was a lot of prerelease buzz about “Companion,” virtually all of it was gushingly positive. The trailers made it out to be a very quirky, very dark comedy. It leaned heavily on the sinister quote from the main character, Iris who says “There were two times I felt truly happy. First, the day I met Josh, second, the day I killed him.”
It’s an attention-grabbing line that is heard in the very opening of the film. It plays against a scene of a perky young brunette meeting a bungling, handsome young man in a supermarket. He nervously bumps into a produce display, sending oranges rolling all over the floor. She giggles, introduces herself and sets the stage for what would be a romantic comedy in any other movie, if it weren’t for that opening line about murdering the man she just met . In the opening reel, “Companion” begins to shape up to be a very, very dark romantic comedy.
It is indeed a cleverly concocted, beautifully written story that is equal parts science fiction and film noir. Without giving away too much, it’s the story of a handsome young man and his sexy young companion who turns out to be a robot. She is human-like in every way, impossible to spot as a replicant.
It’s the kind of technological leap that is bound to be a reality sometime in the future, but not quite as soon as the movie implies.
More specifically, “Companion” seems to be set In the not-too-distant future in which cars, houses, cell phones and electronic tablets look very familiar. The self-driving car early in the film is a hint that the movie does not take place in the present day. The audience just has to go with the idea of radically advanced technology happening in what appears to be the next few years. It’s a minor adjustment.
Once aboard, the story rapidly draws you into the plot involving a small group of friends and what turns out to be a sinister murder plot. That’s the film noir part of the movie. It is a deliciously complex tale, gradually unfolding and steadily descending into the darkest of movie murder plots. It is packed with surprises and shocking revelations that never, ever stop.
Adding to the unnerving suspense is the sci-fi element of the story and the presence of a non-human character with a fascinating array of characteristics and abilities. Besides being what Austin Powers would have called a “Fembot,” Iris—the electronic escort-- is able to speak a whole list of languages. Her menu settings allow adjustments in her eye color, voice, intelligence level and some personality traits like herlevel of aggressiveness. Most interestingly, her advanced programming makes it imposible for her to lie. All of these seemingly unrelated idiosynchrosies cleverly connect in "Companion" like the gears of a fine Swiss timepiece.
Iris appears to have emotions and behaves like a real human being when it comes to affection, loyalty and devotion. In any ways, she is the ideal companion--the ultimate AI sex doll. It’s just that she’s not a real woman, even though she thinks she is.
Robotic women have appeared in many sci-fi movies all the way back to Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis” (1927). More recently, they have become infinitely more complex like Sean Young’s character, Rachael in Ridley Scott’s “Blade Runner” (1982). Her generation of robots were programmed with fake memories of past events that never really happened, in order to make them think they were real. There’s a little of that in “Companion.” It’s a great device that deepens the plot.
It would be unfair to reveal much about the story details. Suffice it to say that it’s one of the most brilliantly structured movie plots in quite some time. It is hugely entertaining with a knockout ending that is impossible to anticipate.
Everything ties together here. There are no loose ends. Even mundane scenes that seem irrelevant eventually weave their way into the heart of the story.
Hopefully, “Companion” will still be on everyone’s minds when Oscar nominations are announced a year from now. It’s a film that will be hard to top.
In addition to the writing, “Companion” deserves attention for the direction, acting, cinematography and editing as well. The soundtrack is perfection, giving a new twist to some very familiar pop tunes.
Don’t let the trailers fool you. “Companion” is much more than just a quirky dark, gore fest comedy. It is a beautifully complex blend of strange science fiction and modern film noir. In terms of its dark comedy theme, “Companion” is in the company of movies like “Blood Simple.” The Coen Brothers themselves might give it five stars.