“One of the best sci-fi thriller of this year”

Dir: Drew Hancock
Prod: Roy Lee, Zach Gregger
Writ: Drew Hancock
Cast: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, Rupert Friend, Harvey Guillén

Okay, this movie is insane! That’s honestly the easiest way to put it. It’s easily going on my “Top 10 Movies” list, especially considering this is coming from one of the writers of the Fred series (I’m not joking, it’s insane). This movie is original, fun, colorful, and actually makes sense even with the whole robot thing (and I’m the type of person who never really buys into that, like Terminator or Robocop). But this one feels real, like it could actually happen in real life. I totally regret not watching it in theaters because it’s so original. Glad it’s already on Max so I can rewatch it a lot.

First off, how’s the movie? Simple: there’s a couple named Iris (played by the magnificently pretty Sophie Thatcher) and Josh (played by new “literally me” personality Jack Quaid) on a weekend getaway to a remote cabin with their friend, which unravels into chaos and reveals that one of them is a companion robot.

Now what makes this movie interesting is how beautifully it’s shot by Eli Born (who also worked on Disney’s 2023 horror movie The Boogeyman, which also starred Sophie Thatcher). The characters are surprisingly relatable especially Iris. And yeah, if you’ve seen the trailer, they kind of give it away that Iris is a robot, but the way her character is written feels like someone you could actually meet in real life. Sophie Thatcher’s performance as Iris (you may know her from The Book of Boba Fett or The Boogeyman) is charming, energetic, and even though she’s playing a robot, you can feel her emotion, her sadness, her fear and that’s how good she is in this movie. (Not gonna lie, I wanted to see more of her like, if I did, I might finally stop calling my best friends “Sophie.” Oh my god.)

Jack Quaid is also really great as Josh like, he’s one of the biggest losers, even his companion robot doesn’t like him. Can you imagine that? Rupert Friend is also clearly having fun in this movie. Overall, the performances are top notch.

The fact that this is a January release and the quality is way above what you’d expect from January movies is a big surprise and a welcome one. If January keeps putting out stuff like this, I’ll 100% support it with my whole heart. The direction from Drew Hancock and the dialogue (also written by him) is very good, especially considering he once wrote for “Fred” movie. That’s nuts. It honestly feels like it’s from a completely different writer, because this movie is so good.

The music is good, the dialogue is clever, and while the twist is predictable, it’s still fun. The movie’s only 97 minutes long and I really appreciate movies that can use that runtime well but still feel complete and satisfying. You learn each character’s backstory, and the movie does a great job at that.

As for nitpicks, maybe some of the side characters weren’t super fleshed out? But to be honest, it’s not that important when the dialogue and story already feel so relatable and grounded, like something that could actually happen.

This movie is simple: if you want a fun, date night, romantic (ish?) sci-fi thriller for 97 minutes or like The Stepford Wives for this generation you’re gonna love it. But if you want a two hour deep dive into every single character, you’re not gonna get that. And that’s fine. This movie is almost flawless. It’s a fun, romantic sci-fi thriller, and every character feels like someone you’d actually meet in real life. I had a blast with it, and I strongly recommend checking it out. It’s now available on Max you can watch it there. And yes, it’s easily going on my “Top 10 Movies” of the year.

My Rating: A