Consider this a challenge for long-term couples who enjoy scary movies: Get comfortable with your partner and stream Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. At first glance, it may seem like standard body horror, but inside Together resides a deep contemplation about our choices in loving one another.
A Directorial Debut Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together marks the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as a couple named Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have stayed together for ten years. Married in reality in 2017, the actors bring a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the joys and frustrations of a enduring union.
The plot commences when the couple relocate from the big city to the rural area for professional reasons. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, sure, but that’s mostly where the tropes conclude. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their new home, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity begins influencing the pair. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The whole movie is a slow burn fright fest, weaving in elements of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but tastefully done) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes during something disturbing). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A great deal of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is amplified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for transportation.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he never makes either of his characters the clear bad guy.
The couple face the kind of problems that are inherent in long-term unions a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for one another. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these fears of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to a partner, the symbolism avoids being hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama serve the other symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have seen the movie as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion plant anxiety and horror, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your significant other and state, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu at present.
