Here's a dare for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of the horror genre: Sit down with your partner and stream Together. The 2025 indie hit has now made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. On the surface, it might appear like standard body horror, but within Together exists a intense examination about the ways we decide to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together represents the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for a decade. Married in actuality in 2017, the actors bring a unique chemistry to their characters, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The narrative begins when Tim and Millie transition from the urban environment to the rural area for her career. A familiar plot device, admittedly, but that’s largely where the cliches end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their country house, a storm hits, and the two tumble into an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence starts to affect the duo. This force compels a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, blending bits of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic dialogue (sometimes in the middle of something horrific). Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and wraps them up in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is solely the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the characters’ relationship. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and removed from his support system. He is terrified of the idea of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he lacks a driver's license and needs Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together never makes one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the type of challenges that come with most partnerships after ten years. At their core, they continue to care for one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together represent these concerns of excessive reliance and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism does not come across as clumsy or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Reports indicate that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Conversely, certain partners having disagreements found that the film actually helped them make up.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could function as a great barometer of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply look at your other half and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an exploration you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu at present.
