Consider this a challenge for partners in committed relationships who enjoy scary movies: Sit down with your significant other and view Together. The 2025 indie hit just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. On the surface, it might appear like standard physical horror, but within Together resides a deep contemplation about how we choose to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for over ten years. United in marriage in real life in 2017, the actors bring a special spark to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The plot starts when the couple relocate from the metropolis to the countryside for Millie’s job. A commonly used plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the conventions end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While hiking near their new home, a tempest descends, and the two fall into an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a mysterious influence starts to affect the couple. This force induces a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, blending elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but tastefully done) physical transformations, and authentically humorous interactions (sometimes in the middle of something horrific). The director skillfully blends these components seamlessly and delivers them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they deftly portray countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his unwillingness to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve relocated rural and distant from his support system. He is terrified of the idea of totally forfeiting his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he can’t drive and relies on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision is that he never makes Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
The couple confront the kind of problems that come with long-term unions a decade in. Fundamentally, they still love one another. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent undercurrent of doubt about their bond.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the allegory never feels clumsy or self-important. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that single viewers have understood the narrative as a powerful case for staying single. On the other hand, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the finale inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply look at your other half and state, “I’d do that for you”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can embark on at this very moment.
Together is streaming on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
