Consider this a dare for partners in committed relationships who appreciate horror films: Settle in with your partner and stream Together. This critically acclaimed 2025 movie has now made its streaming debut on the Hulu service. Outwardly, it might appear like typical body horror, but inside Together exists a intense meditation about the ways we decide to love one another.
An Introductory Film Investigating The Nuances of Love
Together marks the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in real life in 2017, the actors bring a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the good and bad of a enduring union.
The story begins when Tim and Millie relocate from the metropolis to the country for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the tropes conclude. Together becomes 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 hiking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim tumble into an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence takes hold of the pair. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding emotional intimacy.
The entire film is a methodically building fright fest, interspersing elements of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but not excessively graphic) body horror, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes during something disturbing). Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling atmosphere of fear.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray manifold depths to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and sense of connection is waning due to a lack of intimacy. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his hesitance to chase only his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character feels trapped and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and distant from his support system. He is terrified of the notion of utterly sacrificing his personal autonomy in Millie. This fear is amplified by the fact he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he refrains from painting Tim or Millie the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie confront the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships a decade in. At their core, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, comfort one another, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable current of uncertainty about their future together.
Allegory and Meaning
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these concerns of unhealthy attachment and fully committing to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as overly obvious or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes provide a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights serve the other in harmony.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which won’t be spoiled here, has left audiences divided on the film’s ultimate message about enmeshed dynamics. Accounts suggest that single viewers have seen the movie as a powerful case for avoiding commitment. Meanwhile, certain partners having disagreements found that the film actually helped them reconcile.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own reaction could function as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the conclusion plant a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply look at your other half and say, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can experience right now.
Together is streaming on Hulu's platform at present.
