We present a dare for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy the horror genre: Sit down with your partner and view Together. This critically acclaimed 2025 movie recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it could look like conventional body horror, but beneath Together exists a profound meditation about how we choose to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It stars the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for a decade. Married in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a particular energy to their characters, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a enduring union.
The plot begins when the couple transition from the metropolis to the rural area for her career. A familiar narrative setup, sure, but that’s primarily where the cliches end. Together transforms into as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence begins influencing the pair. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond simple connection.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, interspersing bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but tastefully done) physical transformations, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A large part of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his social circle. He dreads the idea of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in his partner. This fear is intensified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision is that he never makes either of his characters the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships over a long period. At their core, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and totally devoting oneself to another person, the metaphor avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a brilliant analogue to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you view relationships. Will the finale plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you identify in either protagonist and yell at the screen, or simply glance toward your significant other and state, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can experience right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform now.
