Consider this a test for long-term couples who are fans of horror films: Get comfortable with your loved one and watch Together. This 2025 indie hit just made its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like typical biological terror, but beneath Together exists a deep contemplation about how we choose to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, partners that have remained a couple for ten years. United in marriage in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a special spark to their roles, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The narrative starts when the couple transition from the urban environment to the rural area for professional reasons. A commonly used plot device, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the conventions conclude. Together evolves into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their new home, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim tumble into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity takes hold of the couple. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but not excessively graphic) body horror, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something grotesque). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and delivers them in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they masterfully render numerous complexities to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Her self-assurance and sense of connection is waning due to a lack of intimacy. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and removed from his network of friends. He dreads the idea of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in his partner. This fear is intensified by the reality he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he avoids making Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
Both characters grapple with the type of challenges that come with most partnerships a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for one another. They still laugh together, offer support, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these concerns of excessive reliance and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory does not come across as overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal serve the other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that single viewers have interpreted the film as a compelling reason for avoiding commitment. Conversely, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could function as a revealing measure of how you view relationships. Will the finale inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and yell at the screen, or simply turn to your other half and state, “We could get through that together”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can undertake right now.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform now.
