Consider this a dare for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate horror films: Settle in with your partner and watch Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie just made its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like conventional body horror, but within Together exists a intense meditation about our choices in loving one another.
A Debut Feature Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together marks the first full-length movie for director Michael Shanks. It stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have stayed together for over ten years. Married in reality in 2017, the two stars bring a particular energy to their characters, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story commences when the couple transition from the metropolis to the country for her career. A somewhat stereotypical story element, of course, but that’s mostly where the cliches cease. Together becomes as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While walking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim tumble into an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity starts to affect the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a methodically building of scares, blending elements of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something grotesque). Shanks orchestrates these parts neatly and delivers them in a slowly mounting atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is only the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is suffering due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to chase only his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
Tim, on the other hand experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He is terrified of the concept of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in his partner. This fear is amplified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision is that he never makes either of his characters the obvious villain.
Tim and Millie grapple with the kind of problems that arise in most partnerships after ten years. At their core, they continue to care for each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together symbolize these concerns of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to another person, the metaphor avoids being overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal serve the other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Reports indicate that single viewers have seen the movie as a strong argument for remaining unattached. Conversely, a few pairs having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to reconcile.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could act as a telling indicator of how you view relationships. Will the ending inspire anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in Tim or Millie and yell at the screen, or simply look at your partner and say, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu now.
