Here's a dare for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate the horror genre: Settle in with your significant other and stream Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie just made its online premiere via Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like conventional biological terror, but inside Together lies a profound examination about our choices in loving our partners.
A Debut Feature Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for a decade. Married in actuality in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The plot begins when the couple move from the metropolis to the rural area for her career. A familiar story element, sure, but that’s largely where the tropes conclude. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While walking near their new home, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim discover an underground cave. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity takes hold of the couple. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn fright fest, blending moments of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but never too gross) physical transformations, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes amidst something grotesque). The director weaves these elements together seamlessly and presents them in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Her self-assurance and emotional bond is waning due to a lack of intimacy. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the idea of completely losing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie avoids making Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that come with long-term unions over a long period. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together symbolize these concerns of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights serve the 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 codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have interpreted the film as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Conversely, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could function as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the finale plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply turn to your partner and say, “We could get through that together”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can embark on right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
