We present a test for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Sit down with your loved one and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it could look like conventional physical horror, but within Together lies a profound meditation about the ways we decide to love one another.
A Debut Feature Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together represents the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have been together for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the actors infuse a unique chemistry to their roles, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The story begins when the couple transition from the metropolis to the rural area for her career. A commonly used story element, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the cliches end. Together evolves into as much a examination of mental states of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their new home, a storm hits, and the protagonists fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity begins influencing the pair. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The entire film is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something disturbing). The director weaves these elements together seamlessly and presents them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a lack of intimacy. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim senses confinement and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the concept of totally forfeiting his sense of self in Millie. This fear is intensified by the reality he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie avoids making Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
The couple grapple with the kind of problems that arise in long-term unions a decade in. Deep down, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these fears of codependency and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as overly obvious or self-important. Instead, these visceral horror elements present a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, some couples 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 potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion plant feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply turn to your other half and say, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu now.
