Consider this a test for long-term couples who appreciate the horror genre: Get comfortable with your partner and view Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its streaming debut via Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like typical body horror, but beneath Together exists a deep examination about the ways we decide to love one another.
An Introductory Film Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together is the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for a decade. Having wed in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a particular energy to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story starts when the couple move from the metropolis to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, of course, but that’s largely where the conventions conclude. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their new home, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force takes hold of the pair. This force compels a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying fright fest, blending moments of hallucinatory nightmares, disturbing (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something disturbing). The director skillfully blends these components neatly and delivers them in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A large part of Together is solely the two lead actors, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is suffering due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve left the city and removed from his network of friends. He fears the concept of completely losing his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the fact he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together avoids making either of his characters the clear bad guy.
The couple confront the sort of issues that are inherent in any relationship after ten years. At their core, they have affection for one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these fears of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the symbolism never feels clumsy or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes provide a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal work together in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for avoiding commitment. Conversely, a few pairs having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you perceive partnership. Will the ending inspire anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you identify in either protagonist and yell at the screen, or simply look at your partner and utter, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can undertake today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu now.
