Consider this a test for partners in committed relationships who enjoy horror films: Settle in with your loved one and view Together. This independent film success of 2025 recently had its online premiere on the Hulu service. At first glance, it might appear like conventional body horror, but within Together exists a deep contemplation about our choices in loving our partners.
A Directorial Debut Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together represents the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the actors infuse a special spark to their characters, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The plot starts when Tim and Millie transition from the big city to the countryside for professional reasons. A familiar story element, sure, but that’s largely where the cliches cease. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While hiking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and eventually escaping, a strange force starts to affect the pair. This force induces a paranormal intimacy between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The entire film is a methodically building of scares, interspersing elements of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but tastefully done) body horror, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes during something grotesque). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and presents them in a consistently growing sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is only the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and sense of connection is waning due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his unwillingness to focus on anything other than his failing musical ambitions slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim senses confinement and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his social circle. He dreads the idea of totally forfeiting his individual identity in Millie. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he lacks a driver's license and needs Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in Together never makes either of his characters the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie face the type of challenges that come with most partnerships after ten years. Deep down, they still love each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together represent these concerns of unhealthy attachment and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor never feels hamfisted or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a ideal counterpart to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. Accounts suggest that single viewers have interpreted the film as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Meanwhile, a few pairs experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own reaction could act as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the ending inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply look at your other half and utter, “We could get through that together”?
No matter your reaction, Together is an experiment you can experience today.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform now.
