Consider this a test for partners in committed relationships who appreciate horror films: Sit down with your partner and watch Together. The 2025 indie hit just made its streaming debut via Hulu. On the surface, it could look like typical physical horror, but within Together lies a intense contemplation about the ways we decide to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Partnership Complexities
Together marks the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for ten years. United in marriage in real life in 2017, the two stars contribute a special spark to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The plot begins when Millie and Tim transition from the big city to the rural area for her career. A familiar plot device, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the tropes conclude. Together evolves into as much a examination of mental states of the partnership as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and the protagonists fall into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity starts to affect the couple. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, weaving in bits of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous interactions (sometimes during something horrific). Shanks orchestrates these parts neatly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A significant portion of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his floundering music career gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve left the city and removed from his social circle. He fears the notion of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in Millie. This fear is amplified by the reality he can’t drive and needs Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision is that he refrains from painting either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Both characters confront the kind of problems that are inherent in any relationship a decade in. Deep down, they still love one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of codependency and giving oneself over to a partner, the allegory never feels clumsy or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama enhance each other symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Conversely, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own reaction could act as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the finale sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply turn to your partner and say, “We could get through that together”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is streaming on the streaming service Hulu at present.
