Here's a dare for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate the horror genre: Get comfortable with your loved one and view Together. This 2025 indie hit has now made its streaming debut on Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like conventional body horror, but inside Together exists a intense meditation about our choices in loving one another.
A Directorial Debut Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together represents the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, an unmarried couple that have been together for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie infuse a particular energy to their roles, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The story begins when Tim and Millie relocate from the metropolis to the countryside for her career. A familiar story element, admittedly, but that’s largely where the tropes end. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their new home, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim discover an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a strange force begins influencing the pair. This force compels a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a methodically building fright fest, blending moments of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and authentically humorous interactions (sometimes during something horrific). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and delivers them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is solely Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character senses confinement and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the concept of totally forfeiting his individual identity in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he never makes either of his characters the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie face the sort of issues that arise in most partnerships a decade in. At their core, they have affection for one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their bond.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the paranormal elements in Together symbolize these fears of codependency and fully committing to a partner, the symbolism avoids being overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama serve the other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Conversely, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could act as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion plant anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply turn to your significant other and utter, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can experience at this very moment.
Together is streaming on Hulu at present.
