We present a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of horror films: Sit down with your partner and view Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie has now made its online premiere on Hulu. At first glance, it might appear like typical biological terror, but within Together resides a profound meditation about our choices in loving our partners.
An Introductory Film Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together represents the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have remained a couple for over ten years. Having wed in reality in 2017, the two stars contribute a particular energy to their roles, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The story begins when the couple transition from the big city to the country for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical story element, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the cliches cease. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their new home, a storm hits, and the two discover an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence begins influencing the pair. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The entire film is a methodically building of scares, weaving in moments of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but never too gross) physical transformations, and authentically humorous exchanges (sometimes amidst something grotesque). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and delivers them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Tim, on the other hand senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and removed from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of completely losing his individual identity in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he avoids making Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
Both characters face the sort of issues that arise in long-term unions a decade in. At their core, they have affection for each other. They still laugh together, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of excessive reliance and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism never feels clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. On the other hand, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could act as a revealing measure of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion inspire anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your significant other and say, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can experience today.
Together is streaming on Hulu at present.
