Here's a dare for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy the horror genre: Settle in with your loved one and watch Together. This 2025 indie hit just made its streaming debut on the Hulu service. At first glance, it may seem like standard biological terror, but beneath Together lies a intense examination about the ways we decide to love each other.
A Debut Feature Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together marks the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, an unmarried couple that have remained a couple for ten years. Married in reality in 2017, the two stars infuse a particular energy to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The story begins when the couple move from the metropolis to the country for her career. A commonly used plot device, of course, but that’s mostly where the conventions end. Together becomes as much a deep dive into the psyche of the pair’s relationship as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their country house, a tempest descends, and the two tumble into an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and eventually escaping, a strange force begins influencing the couple. This force creates a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The entire film is a methodically building fright fest, weaving in moments of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes during something disturbing). The director weaves these elements together neatly and presents them in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A large part of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve left the city and far away from his network of friends. He is terrified of the concept of completely losing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is amplified by the fact he can’t drive and needs Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision in this movie refrains from painting either of his characters the definite antagonist.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that come with most partnerships a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and share intimately at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these fears of excessive reliance and fully committing to a partner, the symbolism does not come across as overly obvious or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer 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 remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for remaining unattached. On the other hand, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could act as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and feel frustration, or simply turn to your significant other and utter, “We could get through that together”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu as of this moment.
