We present a dare for long-term couples who appreciate horror films: Settle in with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 just made its online premiere on Hulu. On the surface, it could look like conventional physical horror, but within Together resides a profound examination about the ways we decide to love each other.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the introductory feature for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, partners that have remained a couple for a decade. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the actors bring a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the joys and frustrations of a enduring union.
The plot commences when Millie and Tim transition from the urban environment to the country for professional reasons. A familiar story element, admittedly, but that’s largely where the conventions conclude. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While walking near their new home, a tempest descends, and the protagonists fall into an hole in the earth. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a strange force begins influencing the couple. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes far beyond typical partnership.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of dreamlike terrors, gross (but not excessively graphic) body horror, and genuinely funny dialogue (sometimes amidst something disturbing). Michael Shanks skillfully blends these components expertly and wraps them up in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A great deal of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits inexorably rises.
In contrast, Tim's character experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and distant from his network of friends. He fears the idea of completely losing his personal autonomy in Millie. This fear is amplified by the fact he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for mobility.
The film's most intelligent aspect in Together avoids making either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the sort of issues that are inherent in long-term unions over a long period. At their core, they still love each other. They still laugh together, comfort one another, and are vulnerable at times. But below this facade, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these anxieties of excessive reliance and giving oneself over to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a perfect parallel to the interpersonal storytelling. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s conclusion, which is best experienced firsthand, has left audiences divided on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have understood the narrative as a compelling reason for staying single. Conversely, some couples having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to make up.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could function as a telling indicator of how you view relationships. Will the ending sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply look at your other half and utter, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake at this very moment.
Together is streaming on Hulu now.
