Consider this a dare for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate scary movies: Get comfortable with your loved one and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. Outwardly, it may seem like conventional body horror, but within Together lies a profound contemplation about how we choose to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together marks the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, partners that have stayed together for a decade. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their characters, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The plot starts when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the conventions cease. Together transforms into as much a examination of mental states of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While trekking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and the two discover an underground cave. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity starts to affect the duo. This force induces a paranormal intimacy between them that goes far beyond emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a slow burn of scares, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) body horror, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes during something disturbing). Shanks weaves these elements together neatly and wraps them up in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is solely Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is waning due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and removed from his support system. He is terrified of the concept of completely losing his sense of self in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie refrains from painting Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie grapple with the kind of problems that arise in most partnerships a decade in. At their core, they still love each other. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these fears of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the allegory avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a strong argument for staying single. Meanwhile, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your other half and say, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can experience right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
