Here's a test for partners in committed relationships who appreciate horror films: Sit down with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 has now made its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like typical physical horror, but within Together exists a deep examination about our choices in loving one another.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together represents the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, partners that have stayed together for ten years. Having wed in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie infuse a unique chemistry to their roles, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The narrative begins when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the conventions cease. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim tumble into an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence begins influencing the duo. This force creates a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a slow burn fright fest, blending moments of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes during something grotesque). Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and wraps them up in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to pursue anything but his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and far away from his network of friends. He is terrified of the notion of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he can’t drive and relies on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie avoids making one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships after ten years. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of excessive reliance and totally devoting oneself to another person, the metaphor does not come across as clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the movie's final takeaway about codependent relationships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a strong argument for remaining unattached. Conversely, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could function as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the ending sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and feel frustration, or simply look at your significant other and state, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can embark on at this very moment.
Together is currently playing on Hulu now.
