Consider this a test for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Get comfortable with your partner and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 recently had its online premiere via Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like standard biological terror, but within Together lies a intense examination about the ways we decide to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together marks the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for over ten years. Having wed in real life in 2017, the two stars infuse a particular energy to their roles, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The plot starts when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar plot device, sure, but that’s mostly where the conventions cease. Together transforms into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a mysterious influence starts to affect the couple. This force creates a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past simple connection.
The entire film is a methodically building of scares, blending moments of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes during something disturbing). Shanks skillfully blends these components seamlessly and wraps them up in a consistently growing sense of impending doom.
Complex Characterizations
A great deal of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He is terrified of the idea of completely losing his sense of self in another person. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he never makes Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Both characters face the sort of issues that come with most partnerships a decade in. Deep down, they continue to care for one another. They share moments of joy, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But below this facade, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these concerns of excessive reliance and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments offer a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that single viewers have seen the movie as a strong argument for remaining unattached. Conversely, some couples having disagreements found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you perceive partnership. Will the conclusion inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you identify in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your other half and state, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is streaming on Hulu at present.
