Consider this a dare for long-term couples who enjoy horror films: Settle in with your loved one and view Together. This independent film success of 2025 just made its online premiere on Hulu. At first glance, it might appear like conventional body horror, but beneath Together resides a intense meditation about how we choose to love one another.
An Introductory Film Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together marks the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have stayed together for ten years. Having wed in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie infuse a unique chemistry to their characters, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The story starts when the couple relocate from the urban environment to the country for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, sure, but that’s mostly where the tropes conclude. Together transforms into as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While walking near their new home, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity starts to affect the pair. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, weaving in bits of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes during something horrific). Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and wraps them up in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is solely Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve left the city and distant from his support system. He fears the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he can’t drive and is dependent on Millie for getting around.
The film's most intelligent aspect in Together never makes one partner or the other the obvious villain.
The couple grapple with the sort of issues that come with long-term unions over a long period. Fundamentally, they continue to care for one another. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Allegory and Meaning
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the allegory does not come across as overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments offer a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal work together in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that those not in relationships have seen the movie as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, some couples experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the ending plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you identify in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply look at your other half and say, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
