Companion is a devilishly different kind of offering for this year’s movie month of love.

If you are looking for a movie to watch with your partner over this February, tread carefully. While scrolling through the list of regular romantic fare at the cinema, do not be fooled by the soft pink hues of Companion’s poster. A claim in the movie’s trailer that it is from the same studio behind The Notebook is equally misleading – intentionally of course.

This romantic/action/horror genre mashup is something quite different and has as much in common with Ex Machina and Strange Darling as it does with the aforementioned old-fashioned cry-along. You see, the romantic interest in Companion is actually a lifelike robot, powered by a kind of artificial intelligence. That is revealed in the trailer, poster and in the first 10 minutes of the movie, so although in spoiler territory it’s not the main twist.

Sophie Thatcher plays Iris, the robot in question, who has been commissioned by Jack Quaid‘s Josh as a romantic interest. That prompts some obvious ethical quandaries. Do you treat one of these robots like you would ChatGPT or Alexa, or does its outward appearance demand different attention? There’s certainly some distrust from human characters, but by-in-large, Iris is a part of the group and has been invited as Josh’s girlfriend to a secluded getaway.

That is where things take a turn for the action-horror and some of the seedier reasons for buying a lifelike robot are explained. It moves along pretty swiftly and resolves itself within 90 minutes, which is always a plus in my book.

There is some pretty broad satire in Companion, about our relationship with technology and indeed the power dynamics in human relationships. Some of it works, some of it less so. But it is a movie with ideas, a darkly comedic script and great execution of its central conceit.

Watch it for some decent horror thrills and an exciting young cast.

Rated 16 for Language, Sex and Violence.

3.5/5.

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