Here's a dare for partners in committed relationships who are fans of the horror genre: Settle in with your loved one and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. On the surface, it could look like standard physical horror, but beneath Together exists a deep contemplation about how we choose to love one another.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together marks the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, partners that have been together for ten years. Having wed in reality in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their characters, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The story begins when Tim and Millie relocate from the metropolis to the countryside for her career. A somewhat stereotypical story element, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the tropes end. 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 finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity takes hold of the couple. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The entire film is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and authentically humorous exchanges (sometimes amidst something horrific). Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and delivers them in a gradually swelling atmosphere of fear.
Complex Characterizations
A significant portion of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is waning due to a emotional and physical gap. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve relocated rural and far away from his network of friends. He is terrified of the notion of completely losing his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together never makes either of his characters the obvious villain.
The couple face the type of challenges that arise in most partnerships after ten years. Fundamentally, they continue to care for each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of codependency and fully committing to another person, the metaphor avoids being clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a brilliant analogue to the character-driven drama. Both the horror and the drama enhance each other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a compelling reason for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could act as a revealing measure of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you identify in Tim or Millie and yell at the screen, or simply look at your other half and utter, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can experience today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform at present.
