We present a dare for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy scary movies: Settle in with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 has now made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. At first glance, it could look like standard body horror, but inside Together resides a profound contemplation about the ways we decide to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Partnership Complexities
Together represents the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the actors bring a unique chemistry to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a committed partnership.
The story starts when Tim and Millie relocate from the metropolis to the country for her career. A familiar plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the tropes cease. Together becomes as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and the two discover an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity takes hold of the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, weaving in elements of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes during something grotesque). Michael Shanks orchestrates these parts seamlessly and delivers them in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and far away from his social circle. He fears the concept of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is amplified by the fact he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he refrains from painting one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
The couple confront the kind of problems that arise in most partnerships a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They still laugh together, offer support, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these concerns of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the metaphor never feels hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights serve the other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that single viewers have seen the movie as a compelling reason for staying single. On the other hand, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film ultimately assisted them resolve their issues.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own response could potentially serve as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the ending sow anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your significant other and state, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an exploration you can experience at this very moment.
Together is currently playing on Hulu at present.
