Here's a test for long-term couples who appreciate the horror genre: Settle in with your significant other and view Together. This independent film success of 2025 has now made its streaming debut via Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like standard biological terror, but inside Together resides a deep contemplation about our choices in loving each other.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Partnership Complexities
Together marks the debut feature-length film for director Michael Shanks. It features the real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple named Tim and Millie, partners that have been together for ten years. Having wed in reality in 2017, the two stars bring a particular energy to their portrayals, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The story commences when Millie and Tim transition from the metropolis to the country for professional reasons. A commonly used plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the cliches end. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the partnership as it is a film about physical terror.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their rural residence, a violent storm occurs, and the two tumble into an hole in the earth. After being trapped overnight there and managing to escape, a strange force starts to affect the duo. This force induces a otherworldly bond between them that goes well past simple connection.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying horror experience, blending bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but never too gross) physical transformations, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes amidst something grotesque). Shanks weaves these elements together seamlessly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting aura of dread.
Complex Characterizations
A significant portion of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a distance. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his struggling artistic pursuits slowly bubbles to the surface.
Conversely, Tim experiences isolation and separated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and distant from his social circle. He dreads the notion of completely losing his individual identity in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for mobility.
The director's cleverest decision in this movie never makes Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie confront the type of challenges that are inherent in long-term unions over a long period. Deep down, they continue to care for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and are vulnerable at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these anxieties of codependency and giving oneself over to a partner, the allegory does not come across as hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s ending, which won’t be spoiled here, has sparked debate on the movie's final takeaway about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. On the other hand, some couples having disagreements found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could function as a telling indicator of how you view relationships. Will the finale sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in Tim or Millie and yell at the screen, or simply turn to your partner and say, “I’d do that for you”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can experience today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu at present.
