We present a dare for long-term couples who appreciate scary movies: Get comfortable with your partner and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like typical physical horror, but inside Together exists a profound meditation about how we choose to love one another.
A Debut Feature Investigating Partnership Complexities
Together represents the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for a decade. Married in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a unique chemistry to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The narrative commences when the couple transition from the metropolis to the country for professional reasons. A somewhat stereotypical story element, sure, but that’s primarily where the cliches end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their country house, a tempest descends, and the two tumble into an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a strange force takes hold of the pair. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying of scares, interspersing bits of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but never too gross) physical transformations, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve left the city and far away from his support system. He dreads the idea of completely losing his sense of self in another person. This fear is intensified by the reality he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision in Together avoids making Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie grapple with the kind of problems that are inherent in long-term unions after ten years. Fundamentally, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these concerns of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the symbolism does not come across as overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements present a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that those not in relationships have interpreted the film as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. On the other hand, some couples who were in conflict found that the film ultimately assisted them make up.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own response could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the ending plant anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your significant other and say, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can experience today.
Together is streaming on Hulu now.
