We present a dare for partners in committed relationships who appreciate horror films: Settle in with your partner and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit recently had its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like typical biological terror, but within Together exists a profound meditation about the ways we decide to love each other.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It showcases Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for over ten years. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the two stars contribute a unique chemistry to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The narrative starts when Millie and Tim relocate from the urban environment to the countryside for her career. A commonly used plot device, sure, but that’s mostly where the cliches conclude. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their rural residence, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a strange force starts to affect the couple. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, blending elements of hallucinatory nightmares, disturbing (but tastefully done) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous interactions (sometimes during something grotesque). Michael Shanks orchestrates these parts neatly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Complex Characterizations
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they masterfully render numerous complexities to the characters’ relationship. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his failing musical ambitions gradually emerges.
Tim, on the other hand experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and far away from his social circle. He fears the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in his partner. This fear is intensified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie never makes either of his characters the clear bad guy.
The couple face the kind of problems that come with long-term unions a decade in. At their core, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, provide solace, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their future together.
Allegory and Meaning
While the paranormal elements in Together represent these anxieties of excessive reliance and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the metaphor never feels clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the horror and the drama serve the other symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the movie's final takeaway about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Conversely, a few pairs who were in conflict found that the film ended up guiding them to resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could act as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the finale inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you identify in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply turn to your partner and state, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu as of this moment.
