We present a dare for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Settle in with your significant other and view Together. This critically acclaimed 2025 movie recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it might appear like standard physical horror, but within Together exists a deep contemplation about how we choose to love one another.
A Debut Feature Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a particular energy to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The narrative starts when Tim and Millie relocate from the urban environment to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, of course, but that’s largely where the conventions end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and the protagonists discover an hole in the earth. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a strange force takes hold of the couple. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a slow burn horror experience, blending elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something disturbing). Shanks skillfully blends these components neatly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is only the two lead actors, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and sense of connection is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character senses confinement and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and distant from his support system. He fears the idea of totally forfeiting his sense of self in another person. This fear is amplified by the fact 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 obvious villain.
The couple grapple with the sort of issues that come with any relationship after ten years. Deep down, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the symbolism does not come across as hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in harmony.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the film’s ultimate message about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them reconcile.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could function as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your significant other and say, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an test you can undertake right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform now.
