Here's a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of the horror genre: Settle in with your loved one and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 just made its streaming debut via Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like typical biological terror, but beneath Together exists a profound examination about how we choose to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as a couple named Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have been together for a decade. Having wed in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a unique chemistry to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The narrative begins when the couple move from the urban environment to the country for professional reasons. A somewhat stereotypical narrative setup, sure, but that’s primarily where the cliches conclude. Together becomes as much a examination of mental states of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While hiking near their new home, a tempest descends, and the protagonists fall into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and managing to escape, a mysterious influence takes hold of the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a methodically building horror experience, interspersing bits of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but never too gross) body horror, and surprisingly comedic interactions (sometimes amidst something grotesque). The director skillfully blends these components seamlessly and presents them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Complex Characterizations
A significant portion of Together is solely the two lead actors, and they deftly portray countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and removed from his social circle. He is terrified of the concept of completely losing his individual identity in Millie. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for getting around.
The director's cleverest decision in Together avoids making one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie face the kind of problems that are inherent in long-term unions after ten years. At their core, they continue to care for one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these fears of unhealthy attachment and fully committing to another person, the symbolism never feels overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a brilliant analogue to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have interpreted the film as a strong argument for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own response could function as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the ending inspire anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and yell at the screen, or simply look at your significant other and state, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can undertake right now.
Together is streaming on Hulu's platform at present.
