We present a dare for long-term couples who appreciate scary movies: Get comfortable with your loved one and view Together. This 2025 indie hit just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it may seem like conventional biological terror, but beneath Together lies a intense meditation about the ways we decide to love our partners.
A Directorial Debut Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together represents the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a special spark to their roles, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The plot starts when the couple move from the urban environment to the countryside for her career. A commonly used story element, of course, but that’s largely where the conventions conclude. Together becomes as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their new home, a violent storm occurs, and the protagonists fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a mysterious influence takes hold of the couple. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying fright fest, blending moments of hallucinatory nightmares, disturbing (but tastefully done) body horror, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they masterfully render countless layers to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his failing musical ambitions gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he avoids making Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Both characters face the type of challenges that come with long-term unions a decade in. Fundamentally, they still love each other. They still laugh together, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of excessive reliance and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor never feels overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements present a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a strong argument for staying single. On the other hand, some couples 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 act as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion inspire anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you identify in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply look at your other half and state, “We could get through that together”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is currently playing on the streaming service Hulu now.
