Consider this a dare for long-term couples who are fans of the horror genre: Sit down with your partner and view Together. This independent film success of 2025 has now made its streaming debut on Hulu. On the surface, it may seem like conventional body horror, but inside Together exists a profound meditation about the ways we decide to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together represents the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have been together for a decade. Having wed in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie infuse a special spark to their characters, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story commences when Tim and Millie move from the big city to the country for Millie’s job. A commonly used plot device, of course, but that’s primarily where the conventions cease. Together becomes as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and the protagonists tumble into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a mysterious influence begins influencing the duo. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The whole movie is a methodically building fright fest, interspersing elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes during something disturbing). Shanks orchestrates these parts expertly and presents them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is suffering due to a lack of intimacy. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and cut off by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and far away from his social circle. He fears the notion of completely losing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he never makes Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
The couple confront the kind of problems that come with long-term unions over a long period. At their core, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the paranormal elements in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the metaphor never feels hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a ideal counterpart to the character-driven drama. Both the frights and the fights work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. Reports indicate that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a powerful case for staying single. Conversely, some couples experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could function as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion plant anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your partner and say, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can undertake today.
Together is currently playing on the streaming service Hulu now.
