Here's a dare for long-term couples who enjoy horror films: Settle in with your significant other and view Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like conventional physical horror, but inside Together exists a deep contemplation about our choices in loving each other.
A Debut Feature Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together is the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, partners that have remained a couple for a decade. Married in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a unique chemistry to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the joys and frustrations of a enduring union.
The plot commences when Tim and Millie transition from the metropolis to the rural area for her career. A commonly used story element, sure, but that’s largely where the cliches conclude. Together transforms into as much a examination of mental states of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their country house, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim discover an subterranean cavern. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a strange force takes hold of the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying fright fest, interspersing bits of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and authentically humorous interactions (sometimes in the middle of something grotesque). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and delivers them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Her self-assurance and sense of connection is suffering due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and far away from his social circle. He dreads the idea of completely losing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
The director's cleverest decision in Together avoids making one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie face the sort of issues that arise in any relationship a decade in. Deep down, they continue to care for one another. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together symbolize these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism does not come across as clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments offer a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together in harmony.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. Meanwhile, a few pairs having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your significant other and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can experience today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform now.
