Consider this a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy horror films: Get comfortable with your loved one and view Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its online premiere on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it might appear like typical biological terror, but beneath Together resides a intense contemplation about how we choose to love one another.
An Introductory Film Exploring Partnership Complexities
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have stayed together for over ten years. Having wed in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a unique chemistry to their roles, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a long-term relationship.
The plot commences when the couple transition from the big city to the countryside for her career. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the conventions end. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their new home, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force begins influencing the pair. This force compels a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, blending moments of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes amidst something grotesque). The director orchestrates these parts neatly and wraps them up in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and distant from his support system. He dreads the concept of totally forfeiting his sense of self in another person. This fear is amplified by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie never makes either of his characters the definite antagonist.
Both characters confront the type of challenges that arise in any relationship after ten years. At their core, they have affection for each other. They still laugh together, offer support, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the allegory does not come across as overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about enmeshed dynamics. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film ultimately assisted them make up.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the finale inspire anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply look at your significant other and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can embark on right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform now.
