We present a test for partners in committed relationships who enjoy scary movies: Settle in with your significant other and stream Together. This critically acclaimed 2025 movie recently had its online premiere via Hulu. Outwardly, it could look like typical biological terror, but beneath Together resides a profound contemplation about the ways we decide to love one another.
A Directorial Debut Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together marks the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for over ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the actors bring a special spark to their characters, skillfully embodying both the joys and frustrations of a enduring union.
The plot commences when Tim and Millie relocate from the big city to the rural area for her career. A commonly used plot device, admittedly, but that’s largely where the cliches end. Together evolves into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their country house, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity begins influencing the duo. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, interspersing elements of fever-dream horrors, gross (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes during something disturbing). The director weaves these elements together neatly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand senses confinement and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and far away from his support system. He dreads the notion of totally forfeiting his personal autonomy in Millie. This fear is amplified by the circumstance 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 clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the sort of issues that are inherent in any relationship over a long period. At their core, they still love each other. They still laugh together, offer support, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent feeling of questioning about their bond.
Allegory and Meaning
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of codependency and fully committing to another person, the allegory does not come across as overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have interpreted the film as a compelling reason for remaining unattached. Conversely, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own interpretation could function as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your other half and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can embark on right now.
Together is streaming on the streaming service Hulu now.
