Here's a challenge for partners in committed relationships who appreciate scary movies: Sit down with your partner and watch Together. This critically acclaimed 2025 movie just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it might appear like standard body horror, but beneath Together resides a deep meditation about how we choose to love one another.
An Introductory Film Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, partners that have been together for a decade. Married in reality in 2017, the actors infuse a special spark to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a committed partnership.
The narrative starts when Tim and Millie relocate from the metropolis to the country for Millie’s job. A commonly used story element, sure, but that’s primarily where the cliches end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their new home, a tempest descends, and the two fall into an subterranean cavern. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force begins influencing the pair. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic interactions (sometimes amidst something horrific). Shanks orchestrates these parts seamlessly and presents them in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they masterfully render countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and removed from his network of friends. He is terrified of the notion of completely losing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is intensified by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he avoids making Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships over a long period. Deep down, they still love one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the paranormal elements in Together symbolize these fears of excessive reliance and fully committing to another person, the allegory avoids being overly obvious or self-important. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a brilliant analogue to the character-driven drama. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about enmeshed dynamics. Accounts suggest that single viewers have understood the narrative as a strong argument for remaining unattached. Meanwhile, some couples having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could function as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the ending sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in Tim or Millie and yell at the screen, or simply look at your other half and state, “We could get through that together”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can undertake right now.
Together is streaming on Hulu now.
