We present a test for partners in committed relationships who enjoy the horror genre: Get comfortable with your loved one and stream Together. The independent film success of 2025 recently had its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. At first glance, it might appear like typical biological terror, but within Together lies a intense examination about how we choose to love one another.
An Introductory Film Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, partners that have stayed together for ten years. Married in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie contribute a particular energy to their roles, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a enduring union.
The narrative begins when the couple move from the metropolis to the countryside for professional reasons. A familiar story element, of course, but that’s primarily where the cliches conclude. Together becomes as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their new home, a storm hits, and the two fall into an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and finally finding a way out, a strange force takes hold of the couple. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes exceeding simple connection.
The entire film is a slow burn of scares, blending bits of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but tastefully done) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes during something grotesque). Shanks orchestrates these parts expertly and presents them in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve left the city and far away from his network of friends. He fears the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in this movie never makes Tim or Millie the obvious villain.
The couple grapple with the sort of issues that come with any relationship a decade in. Fundamentally, they continue to care for each other. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But below this facade, there’s an unavoidable undercurrent of doubt about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these concerns of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the metaphor never feels overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the frights and the fights serve the other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that those not in relationships have interpreted the film as a strong argument for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your partner and say, “We could get through that together”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can experience right now.
Together is currently playing on Hulu now.
