We present a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate horror films: Sit down with your partner and watch Together. This 2025 indie hit recently had its streaming debut on the Hulu service. At first glance, it could look like standard body horror, but beneath Together resides a deep examination about the ways we decide to love each other.
An Introductory Film Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together is the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, partners that have stayed together for a decade. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the two stars contribute a unique chemistry to their portrayals, skillfully embodying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The plot starts when Tim and Millie move from the urban environment to the rural area for Millie’s job. A familiar narrative setup, of course, but that’s mostly where the cliches end. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While trekking near their country house, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence takes hold of the pair. This force creates a paranormal intimacy between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and genuinely funny exchanges (sometimes in the middle of something grotesque). Michael Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and delivers them in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is only the two lead actors, and they masterfully render manifold depths to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to chase only his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character 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 concept of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in his partner. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for getting around.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he avoids making one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
The couple confront the sort of issues that arise in any relationship after ten years. At their core, they continue to care for one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together symbolize these anxieties of unhealthy attachment and fully committing to a partner, the allegory avoids being hamfisted or self-important. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the frights and the fights work together symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. Conversely, certain partners who were in conflict found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own interpretation could act as a telling indicator of how you perceive partnership. Will the finale sow feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply turn to your partner and say, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is currently playing on the streaming service Hulu now.
