Here's a test for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy scary movies: Settle in with your loved one and view Together. The 2025 indie hit has now made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. At first glance, it may seem like conventional biological terror, but within Together lies a intense meditation about the ways we decide to love one another.
An Introductory Film Investigating Partnership Complexities
Together marks the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their roles, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The narrative commences when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical narrative setup, sure, but that’s mostly where the cliches conclude. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their country house, a tempest descends, and the two fall into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a strange force begins influencing the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond emotional intimacy.
The whole movie is a methodically building of scares, interspersing bits of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but tastefully done) physical transformations, and authentically humorous exchanges (sometimes amidst something grotesque). Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and delivers them in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A large part of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve relocated rural and removed from his support system. He dreads the concept of completely losing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he can’t drive and relies on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie refrains from painting Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Both characters confront the sort of issues that arise in most partnerships a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together symbolize these fears of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory never feels clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a ideal counterpart to the character-driven drama. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which is best experienced firsthand, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. Accounts suggest that single viewers have seen the movie as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, some couples having disagreements found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could function as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you identify in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply look at your significant other and state, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
