We present a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy scary movies: Settle in with your significant other and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit has now made its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. Outwardly, it may seem like standard body horror, but beneath Together resides a profound examination about how we choose to love our partners.
An Introductory Film Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together is the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, partners that have remained a couple for over ten years. Having wed in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a special spark to their characters, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a committed partnership.
The plot commences when Millie and Tim move from the metropolis to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the tropes cease. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While walking near their new home, a tempest descends, and the two fall into an subterranean cavern. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a mysterious influence starts to affect the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, blending elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes amidst something horrific). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and delivers them in a gradually swelling atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and distant from his social circle. He is terrified of the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in another person. This fear is amplified by the fact he lacks a driver's license and needs Millie for transportation.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie never makes one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
Both characters face the sort of issues that are inherent in long-term unions a decade in. Deep down, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these concerns of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the symbolism never feels hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s final act, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. It has been said that single viewers have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, some couples having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own response could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion inspire anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply look at your significant other and utter, “We could get through that together”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an test you can experience right now.
Together is currently playing on Hulu as of this moment.
