Consider this a challenge for partners in committed relationships who are fans of horror films: Settle in with your significant other and view Together. This 2025 indie hit has now made its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like typical physical horror, but beneath Together lies a profound contemplation about the ways we decide to love one another.
An Introductory Film Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together is the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have stayed together for ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the actors bring a particular energy to their characters, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The plot commences when the couple move from the big city to the countryside for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical story element, of course, but that’s primarily where the cliches end. Together transforms into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and the two tumble into an subterranean cavern. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a mysterious influence begins influencing the couple. This force induces a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The whole movie is a slow burn fright fest, weaving in bits of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something horrific). The director weaves these elements together expertly and presents them in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is only the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He fears the notion of completely losing his sense of self in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision in Together never makes one partner or the other the obvious villain.
The couple confront the type of challenges that are inherent in any relationship a decade in. Deep down, they continue to care for one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to another person, the allegory avoids being clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments offer a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, some couples who were in conflict found that the film ultimately assisted 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 feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply turn to your significant other and say, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform at present.
