Consider this a dare for partners in committed relationships who appreciate the horror genre: Settle in with your loved one and stream Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. On the surface, it could look like conventional biological terror, but beneath Together exists a deep examination about how we choose to love each other.
An Introductory Film Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together represents the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have remained a couple for a decade. Having wed in reality in 2017, the actors contribute a particular energy to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a committed partnership.
The plot begins when Millie and Tim move from the urban environment to the rural area for professional reasons. A somewhat stereotypical narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the conventions end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and the two fall into an underground cave. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a strange force begins influencing the pair. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn horror experience, interspersing bits of dreamlike terrors, gross (but never too gross) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic interactions (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and far away from his social circle. He dreads the notion of completely losing his sense of self in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he can’t drive and relies on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together refrains from painting Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
The couple face the sort of issues that come with any relationship after ten years. Fundamentally, they have affection for one another. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their future together.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these fears of excessive reliance and giving oneself over to another person, the symbolism never feels clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a brilliant analogue to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that single viewers have seen the movie as a compelling reason for avoiding commitment. Conversely, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you identify in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your significant other and say, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu at present.
