Here's a test for those in enduring partnerships who are fans of scary movies: Settle in with your significant other and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 has now made its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. At first glance, it could look like typical body horror, but beneath Together exists a deep meditation about the ways we decide to love our partners.
A Directorial Debut Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as a couple named Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the actors contribute a particular energy to their characters, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The story commences when Millie and Tim relocate from the big city to the rural area for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, admittedly, but that’s primarily where the tropes end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While trekking near their country house, a storm hits, and the protagonists discover an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force takes hold of the couple. This force induces a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond emotional intimacy.
The entire film is a methodically building fright fest, interspersing moments of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic dialogue (sometimes during something grotesque). The director orchestrates these parts expertly and presents them in a consistently growing sense of impending doom.
Complex Characterizations
A large part of Together is exclusively Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve moved to the country and distant from his support system. He dreads the notion of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is intensified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
The film's most intelligent aspect in Together avoids making either of his characters the obvious villain.
Both characters confront the type of challenges that arise in any relationship after ten years. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their bond.
Allegory and Meaning
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these fears of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the metaphor does not come across as hamfisted or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have seen the movie as a strong argument for staying single. Conversely, some couples who were in conflict found that the film ultimately assisted them make up.
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 ending inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply look at your significant other and state, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an test you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is available to watch on Hulu now.