Sophie Thatcher’s weekend getaway turns sour in writer-director Drew Hancock’s comedic horror film. Here’s our Companion review.
Companion, writer-director Drew Hancock’s feature debut, is a tough nut to crack, or at least review. It’s a film that works best without knowing anything about it, but also, the trailers have ruined almost all of its surprises. If you haven’t watched the trailer, we would discourage you from watching it before seeing the film.
We’ll tread carefully with the story. Sophie Thatcher’s Iris heads off for a relaxing weekend getaway with her boyfriend Josh (Jack Quaid). Their friends Eli (Harvey Guillén), Patrick (Lukas Gage), Kat (Megan Suri) and Kat’s boyfriend Sergey (Rupert Friend, chewing the scenery like there’s no tomorrow) await them. Then the weekend quickly takes a dark turn and Iris finds herself on the run.
Ultimately, Companion is – or at least wants to be – a story about a woman violently freeing herself from the abusive constraints of the patriarchy. If that whole sentence makes you gag, don’t worry: Companion is a lot of fun, and often leans into comedy more than horror. There’s plenty of blood and violence, but you’re more likely find yourself sniggering than screaming.
The story begins with Iris traversing the aisles of a grocery store when she bumps into Josh, who manages to cause a small landslide of oranges. It’s love at first sight – or perhaps at first orange – and the two seem like the perfect couple.
Zach Cregger is on board as a producer here, and there’s a bit of his breakthrough hit Barbarian in the film’s casting choices. If Bill Skarsgård was used to great effect in Barbarian, Quaid’s casting works in a similar fashion, lulling you into a false sense of peace and comfort. Companion looks to examine how men will always seek to control women through an inherent belief that they have some universally recognised right to do so. Everybody deserves love, but in Companion, if you can’t find it, you can force it into existence.
Despite such heavy themes, Companion flows well, and Hancock’s script keeps the action coming at a steady enough pace that you won’t get bored. There’s a lot of ambition here too, an attempt to say something real about men and women, but it’s mostly drowned out by the comedy which feels dull and uninspired. The violence comes in short bursts, but the shock factor wears off quickly.
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Thatcher, who is fast becoming one of the most prominent scream queens of our time, is excellent as Iris. As in Heretic and The Boogeyman, Thatcher is able to elicit a lot of genuine empathy for Iris. Hancock films her in close-ups, really bringing forth those complex emotions Iris battles with as she finds out more about herself and her relationship with Josh.
I had a lot of fun with Companion. I genuinely enjoyed it, I was invested in Iris’ journey and I laughed a lot. Yet, I couldn’t help but compare it to other, similar films. My mind kept wandering to Abigail, The Stepford Wives, the aforementioned Barbarian and 2022’s Scream, all films I enjoyed. It’s not that Companion is worse than those, but should I really be thinking of other films while watching this one?
Regardless, Companion is a good time at the movies. It’s a little unsteady in places, but Hancock’s script is pleasingly sharp and witty. It’s also aided by Thatcher and Quaid’s performances and Lukas Gage also deserves a special mention as Patrick, who quickly emerges as one of the film’s more complex, intriguing characters. Gage’s physical performance is also marvellous.
For spoilery reasons, I can’t go into much detail about Companion, but it’s certainly thought-provoking and raises some interesting points. It doesn’t quite find the balance between comedy and horror, and some of its observations ring a little hollow, but there’s still a lot to like here.
Companion is in cinemas 31st January.
