Consider this a test for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy horror films: Get comfortable with your partner and watch Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie has now made its online premiere on Hulu. On the surface, it could look like conventional biological terror, but beneath Together exists a deep meditation about how we choose to love each other.
A Directorial Debut Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together marks the introductory feature for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for ten years. United in marriage in real life in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a unique chemistry to their portrayals, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The story starts when Tim and Millie transition from the urban environment to the countryside for professional reasons. A somewhat stereotypical story element, admittedly, but that’s largely where the tropes cease. Together evolves into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their new home, a storm hits, and the protagonists fall into an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity takes hold of the duo. This force induces a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past simple connection.
The entire film is a methodically building of scares, interspersing elements of fever-dream horrors, unsettling (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and presents them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Layered Performances
A large part of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is waning due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career gradually emerges.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve left the city and distant from his support system. He is terrified of the notion of completely losing his sense of self in his partner. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he lacks a driver's license and needs Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision in Together never makes Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie face the type of challenges that are inherent in long-term unions a decade in. At their core, they still love each other. They find humor with each other, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an persistent feeling of questioning about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the paranormal elements in Together symbolize these fears of unhealthy attachment and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism avoids being clumsy or self-important. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. Conversely, some couples experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them make up.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could function as a revealing measure of how you think about commitment. Will the ending plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in Tim or Millie and scream at your TV, or simply glance toward your other half and state, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu as of this moment.
