We present a test for partners in committed relationships who are fans of scary movies: Sit down with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. On the surface, it could look like conventional body horror, but within Together lies a intense examination about how we choose to love one another.
A Debut Feature Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together marks the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have been together for ten years. Married in reality in 2017, the actors infuse a special spark to their roles, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The story starts when Tim and Millie move from the metropolis to the country for professional reasons. A commonly used story element, sure, but that’s primarily where the tropes end. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their new home, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a strange force starts to affect the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, blending moments of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes amidst something horrific). The director skillfully blends these components seamlessly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and sense of connection is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions gradually emerges.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and far away from his network of friends. He dreads the idea of completely losing his sense of self in another person. This fear is amplified by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for transportation.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie never makes one partner or the other the obvious villain.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that come with any relationship a decade in. Deep down, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together symbolize these concerns of excessive reliance and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a brilliant analogue to the character-driven drama. Both the frights and the fights work together in harmony.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the film’s ultimate message about enmeshed dynamics. Reports indicate that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Conversely, some couples who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply glance toward your significant other and say, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu at present.
