Here's a challenge for long-term couples who are fans of scary movies: Sit down with your partner and view Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its online premiere via Hulu. Outwardly, it might appear like typical biological terror, but beneath Together resides a intense meditation about how we choose to love each other.
A Debut Feature Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together is the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for ten years. Married in actuality in 2017, the two stars bring a special spark to their roles, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story begins when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A commonly used plot device, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the conventions end. Together becomes as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their rural residence, a tempest descends, and the protagonists fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a mysterious influence takes hold of the pair. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The whole movie is a slow burn of scares, interspersing elements of dreamlike terrors, gross (but never too gross) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something disturbing). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and presents them in a consistently growing sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render numerous complexities to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Her self-assurance and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
Tim, on the other hand experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and distant from his support system. He is terrified of the idea of totally forfeiting his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is amplified by the fact he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie avoids making either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Both characters face the kind of problems that are inherent in long-term unions after ten years. Deep down, they have affection for one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these fears of excessive reliance and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as hamfisted or heavy-handed. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a brilliant analogue to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama enhance each other in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a strong argument for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your partner and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can embark on right now.
Together is streaming on Hulu at present.
