Consider this a test for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate the horror genre: Sit down with your significant other and watch Together. The 2025 indie hit just made its online premiere on Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like conventional biological terror, but inside Together lies a deep examination about how we choose to love our partners.
A Debut Feature Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together is the introductory feature for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, partners that have remained a couple for over ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their characters, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The story begins when the couple move from the metropolis to the countryside for her career. A familiar narrative setup, sure, but that’s largely where the tropes conclude. Together becomes as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While hiking near their new home, a storm hits, and the two tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a strange force begins influencing the couple. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond simple connection.
The complete narrative is a methodically building of scares, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic interactions (sometimes during something grotesque). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A great deal of Together is only the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a distance. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and removed from his social circle. He dreads the idea of completely losing his sense of self in another person. This fear is intensified by the reality he can’t drive and relies on Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision in Together never makes one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie grapple with the kind of problems that come with any relationship a decade in. Deep down, they still love one another. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these fears of excessive reliance and fully committing to another person, the metaphor avoids being overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes provide a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the horror and the drama serve the other in harmony.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. It has been said that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a compelling reason for staying single. Meanwhile, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film ended up guiding them to reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the ending inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your partner and say, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can embark on at this very moment.
Together is streaming on Hulu's platform now.