We present a challenge for long-term couples who are fans of horror films: Sit down with your loved one and stream Together. The independent film success of 2025 recently had its streaming debut on Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like standard biological terror, but within Together resides a deep examination about how we choose to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the introductory feature for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have been together for ten years. United in marriage in real life in 2017, the actors infuse a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The narrative commences when Tim and Millie relocate from the urban environment to the rural area for professional reasons. A commonly used plot device, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the cliches cease. Together transforms into as much a examination of mental states of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and the protagonists tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a strange force starts to affect the pair. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The entire film is a gradually intensifying of scares, interspersing elements of dreamlike terrors, gross (but tastefully done) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes amidst something horrific). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components seamlessly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his reluctance to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions gradually emerges.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and cut off by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve left the city and distant from his network of friends. He is terrified of the concept of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is amplified by the reality he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision is that he avoids making either of his characters the obvious villain.
The couple confront the type of challenges that come with any relationship after ten years. Deep down, they still love each other. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and open up at times. But below this facade, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory avoids being hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. Conversely, some couples experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own reaction could potentially serve 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 identify in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your partner and utter, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an test you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
