We present a challenge for long-term couples who enjoy horror films: Settle in with your significant other and view Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie has now made its launch on a streaming platform on Hulu. At first glance, it might appear like typical biological terror, but beneath Together resides a intense meditation about how we choose to love our partners.
A Directorial Debut Investigating Partnership Complexities
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in reality in 2017, the actors bring a particular energy to their characters, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The narrative begins when Millie and Tim relocate from the urban environment to the rural area for her career. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, of course, but that’s largely where the tropes end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their rural residence, a tempest descends, and the protagonists fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity begins influencing the pair. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, blending bits of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but tastefully done) physical transformations, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes amidst something horrific). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and wraps them up in a consistently growing atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A great deal of Together is only the two lead actors, and they skillfully illustrate manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and sense of connection is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his hesitance to chase only his failing musical ambitions inexorably rises.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and isolated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and distant from his support system. He fears the idea of totally forfeiting his individual identity in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the fact he can’t drive and relies on Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision is that he never makes one partner or the other the obvious villain.
Both characters confront the type of challenges that come with long-term unions after ten years. Deep down, they have affection for each other. They still laugh together, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an unavoidable undercurrent of doubt about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together act as a metaphor for these fears of codependency and fully committing to another person, the metaphor never feels hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these visceral horror elements present a perfect parallel to the character-driven drama. Both the supernatural and the personal serve the other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has created disagreement on the story's concluding statement about enmeshed dynamics. It has been said that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a powerful case for staying single. Conversely, some couples experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them make up.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could act as a revealing measure of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a positive outlook on love? Will you identify in Tim or Millie and feel frustration, or simply look at your other half and say, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can embark on right now.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform as of this moment.
