Consider this a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy the horror genre: Sit down with your loved one and stream Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie just made its streaming debut on Hulu. On the surface, it could look like typical body horror, but inside Together lies a intense contemplation about our choices in loving our partners.
A Debut Feature Investigating Partnership Complexities
Together represents the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for a decade. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the actors infuse a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The story commences when the couple transition from the urban environment to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, sure, but that’s largely where the cliches conclude. Together becomes as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their new home, a storm hits, and the two fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity takes hold of the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying fright fest, interspersing moments of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something grotesque). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and presents them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A large part of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to pursue anything but his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and distant from his social circle. He is terrified of the concept of utterly sacrificing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is intensified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for mobility.
Shanks’ smartest move in this movie refrains from painting either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie grapple with the kind of problems that arise in long-term unions over a long period. Deep down, 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 inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together represent these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory never feels overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments offer a ideal counterpart to the character-driven drama. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other symbiotically.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. It has been said that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, a few pairs who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could act as a revealing measure of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and feel frustration, or simply turn to your partner and state, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an test you can embark on today.
Together is currently playing on the streaming service Hulu now.
