Here's a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy horror films: Sit down with your significant other and stream Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie has now made its streaming debut on Hulu. Outwardly, it may seem like standard biological terror, but beneath Together resides a profound contemplation about the ways we decide to love each other.
A Directorial Debut Delving into The Nuances of Love
Together marks the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It showcases Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have remained a couple for ten years. Married in actuality in 2017, the two stars infuse a unique chemistry to their characters, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The narrative commences when the couple move from the urban environment to the countryside for Millie’s job. A familiar story element, of course, but that’s largely where the cliches cease. Together transforms into as much a examination of mental states of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their country house, a tempest descends, and the two tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity starts to affect the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The whole movie is a methodically building of scares, interspersing bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but tastefully done) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes in the middle of something grotesque). Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and presents them in a consistently growing sense of impending doom.
Layered Performances
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his unwillingness to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits gradually emerges.
Conversely, Tim feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and distant from his support system. He dreads the concept of completely losing his individual identity in his partner. This fear is intensified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for getting around.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he never makes one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
The couple face the sort of issues that are inherent in any relationship a decade in. At their core, they still love one another. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable undercurrent of doubt about their bond.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these anxieties of excessive reliance and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism avoids being hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the frights and the fights work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which is best experienced firsthand, has left audiences divided on the movie's final takeaway about enmeshed dynamics. Reports indicate that those not in relationships have seen the movie as a compelling reason for remaining unattached. Conversely, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film ended up guiding them to resolve their issues.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the ending inspire anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply look at your partner and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an exploration you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform now.