We present a dare for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate the horror genre: Get comfortable with your partner and watch Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it might appear like conventional physical horror, but inside Together resides a intense examination about how we choose to love our partners.
An Introductory Film Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together is the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the two stars contribute a unique chemistry to their roles, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a enduring union.
The plot begins when Tim and Millie transition from the big city to the country for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the cliches end. 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 rural residence, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence begins influencing the couple. This force compels a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past simple connection.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, interspersing moments of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but never too gross) physical transformations, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes amidst something disturbing). Shanks orchestrates these parts expertly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career gradually emerges.
Conversely, Tim feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in his partner. This fear is intensified by the circumstance he can’t drive and relies on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie avoids making Tim or Millie the obvious villain.
Tim and Millie face the kind of problems that arise in most partnerships a decade in. Deep down, they continue to care for each other. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the metaphor avoids being clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama serve the other symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a strong argument for staying single. On the other hand, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could function as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the ending plant anxiety and horror, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and scream at your TV, or simply look at your significant other and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an test you can embark on today.
Together is streaming on the streaming service Hulu as of this moment.
