Here's a challenge for partners in committed relationships who are fans of horror films: Sit down with your partner and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. At first glance, it may seem like conventional body horror, but beneath Together lies a profound contemplation about our choices in loving each other.
A Directorial Debut Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together marks the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for a decade. Married in actuality in 2017, the actors bring a unique chemistry to their roles, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a enduring union.
The plot begins when Millie and Tim move from the metropolis to the countryside for her career. A commonly used story element, of course, but that’s primarily where the cliches cease. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After spending the night there and eventually escaping, a supernatural entity begins influencing the pair. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a slow burn horror experience, weaving in bits of dreamlike terrors, disturbing (but tastefully done) body horror, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes during something horrific). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and presents them in a slowly mounting atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A great deal of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the partnership at the film's core. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to pursue anything but his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve moved to the country and removed from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of totally forfeiting his sense of self in another person. This fear is intensified by the fact he lacks a driver's license and relies on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move is that he avoids making one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the kind of problems that arise in most partnerships after ten years. Fundamentally, they continue to care for one another. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their bond.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these fears of codependency and totally devoting oneself to a partner, the metaphor avoids being clumsy or self-important. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a brilliant analogue to the character-driven drama. Both the supernatural and the personal serve the other symbiotically.
A Debated Finale
Together’s conclusion, which won’t be spoiled here, has created disagreement on the film’s ultimate message about enmeshed dynamics. Accounts suggest that those not in relationships have interpreted the film as a powerful case for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own interpretation could function as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale plant anxiety and horror, or a positive outlook on love? Will you identify in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your partner and state, “I understand that choice”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can embark on right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu now.