We present a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Get comfortable with your loved one and stream Together. This 2025 indie hit has now made its streaming debut on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it may seem like standard body horror, but beneath Together resides a intense meditation about the ways we decide to love our partners.
A Directorial Debut Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as a couple named Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have stayed together for a decade. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the actors bring a unique chemistry to their roles, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The narrative starts when the couple move from the metropolis to the country for her career. A familiar narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the tropes conclude. Together evolves into as much a examination of mental states of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and the protagonists discover an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity begins influencing the pair. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a methodically building of scares, blending bits of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but tastefully done) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes during something disturbing). The director skillfully blends these components neatly and presents them in a gradually swelling atmosphere of fear.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is suffering due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to pursue anything but his failing musical ambitions slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve left the city and distant from his social circle. He fears the notion of utterly sacrificing his individual identity in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the fact he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie avoids making either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in any relationship a decade in. At their core, they have affection for one another. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and open up at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the symbolism avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a brilliant analogue to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. It has been said that single viewers have understood the narrative as a powerful case for staying single. Meanwhile, some couples experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own response could function as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion inspire anxiety and horror, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you identify in one of the characters and scream at your TV, or simply look at your other half and say, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can embark on at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform at present.
