Here's a dare for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Settle in with your partner and stream Together. The 2025 indie hit recently had its streaming debut on Hulu. Outwardly, it might appear like standard biological terror, but within Together resides a deep meditation about how we choose to love our partners.
A Debut Feature Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together is the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have been together for ten years. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the actors bring a unique chemistry to their roles, expertly portraying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story commences when Tim and Millie move from the metropolis to the countryside for professional reasons. A familiar plot device, admittedly, but that’s largely where the conventions end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a strange force starts to affect the couple. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes far beyond emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a methodically building horror experience, interspersing elements of hallucinatory nightmares, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) body horror, and surprisingly comedic dialogue (sometimes during something disturbing). Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and far away from his support system. He is terrified of the concept of totally forfeiting his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the fact he can’t drive and needs Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he refrains from painting one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie grapple with the type of challenges that come with any relationship after ten years. Deep down, they still love one another. They still laugh together, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the allegory never feels clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the supernatural and the personal work together symbiotically.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Conversely, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the ending sow anxiety and horror, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you recognize your own traits in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your other half and say, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform at present.
