Consider this a test for long-term couples who appreciate the horror genre: Settle in with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 has now made its streaming debut via Hulu. At first glance, it could look like typical physical horror, but inside Together resides a profound contemplation about the ways we decide to love our partners.
An Introductory Film Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, partners that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie infuse a unique chemistry to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The plot commences when Millie and Tim relocate from the metropolis to the rural area for professional reasons. A familiar narrative setup, sure, but that’s primarily where the tropes end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their rural residence, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim fall into an underground cave. After being trapped overnight there and eventually escaping, a strange force starts to affect the couple. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond simple connection.
The entire film is a gradually intensifying horror experience, interspersing elements of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes during something horrific). Shanks orchestrates these parts seamlessly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his reluctance to pursue anything but his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and cut off by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and far away from his network of friends. He fears the concept of completely losing his sense of self in his partner. This fear is intensified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision in this movie refrains from painting either of his characters the obvious villain.
The couple grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships over a long period. Deep down, they continue to care for each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and open up at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent feeling of questioning about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these fears of unhealthy attachment and totally devoting oneself to another person, the metaphor does not come across as overly obvious or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama serve the other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about unhealthy partnerships. It has been said that unattached audience members have seen the movie as a compelling reason for staying single. Meanwhile, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could act as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the ending sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your partner and say, “I understand that choice”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an exploration you can embark on today.
Together is streaming on Hulu's platform now.
