Consider this a challenge for those in enduring partnerships who enjoy scary movies: Sit down with your loved one and watch Together. The critically acclaimed 2025 movie just made its streaming debut on Hulu. At first glance, it may seem like conventional biological terror, but within Together resides a deep meditation about how we choose to love our partners.
A Debut Feature Exploring The Nuances of Love
Together represents the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, a pair who are not married that have remained a couple for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, the two stars contribute a special spark to their roles, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a enduring union.
The plot commences when Tim and Millie relocate from the big city to the countryside for professional reasons. A familiar plot device, sure, but that’s primarily where the tropes cease. Together transforms into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While trekking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and the protagonists fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity takes hold of the pair. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in moments of dreamlike terrors, unsettling (but never too gross) body horror, and surprisingly comedic dialogue (sometimes during something grotesque). Shanks weaves these elements together expertly and presents them in a gradually swelling aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A significant portion of Together is exclusively the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the characters’ relationship. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is waning 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 senses confinement and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and distant from his support system. He dreads the notion of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he lacks a driver's license and needs Millie for getting around.
The director's cleverest decision in this movie never makes one partner or the other the definite antagonist.
Tim and Millie confront the sort of issues that come with most partnerships over a long period. At their core, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an unavoidable current of uncertainty about their bond.
Allegory and Meaning
While the paranormal elements in Together symbolize these fears of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory avoids being overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes offer a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights serve the other symbiotically.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s final act, which is best experienced firsthand, has created disagreement on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. It has been said that unattached audience members have interpreted the film as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Meanwhile, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ended up guiding them to resolve their issues.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own interpretation could function as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the ending sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you identify in either protagonist and scream at your TV, or simply turn to your other half and say, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu as of this moment.
