Consider this a dare for long-term couples who enjoy horror films: Get comfortable with your loved one and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 recently had its launch on a streaming platform via Hulu. On the surface, it might appear like standard biological terror, but inside Together lies a deep meditation about our choices in loving each other.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Relationship Dynamics
Together marks the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It showcases Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Millie and Tim, a pair who are not married that have been together for a decade. United in marriage in reality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a particular energy to their roles, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a committed partnership.
The story begins when Tim and Millie relocate from the urban environment to the country for Millie’s job. A familiar story element, sure, but that’s primarily where the tropes end. Together transforms into as much a psychological exploration of the pair’s relationship as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
A Supernatural Catalyst
While hiking near their new home, a tempest descends, and Millie and Tim fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and eventually escaping, a strange force starts to affect the duo. This force compels a paranormal intimacy between them that goes exceeding simple connection.
The whole movie is a slow burn horror experience, weaving in elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but not excessively graphic) physical transformations, and genuinely funny interactions (sometimes during something grotesque). Shanks skillfully blends these components seamlessly and presents them in a slowly mounting sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is only Brie and Franco, and they deftly portray countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie’s confidence and emotional bond is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to pursue anything but his floundering music career gradually emerges.
Tim, on the other hand experiences isolation and isolated by Millie, who’s the reason they’ve relocated rural and far away from his social circle. He is terrified of the idea of totally forfeiting his individual identity in his partner. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he can’t drive and relies on Millie for transportation.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together never makes either of his characters the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie confront the kind of problems that arise in long-term unions a decade in. Fundamentally, they have affection for each other. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent feeling of questioning about their future together.
Symbolism and Metaphor
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of codependency and giving oneself over to another person, the allegory does not come across as hamfisted or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments present a brilliant analogue to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. On the other hand, certain partners having disagreements found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own response could act as a revealing measure of how you view relationships. Will the finale sow a sense of discomfort and fear, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and feel frustration, or simply glance toward your significant other and state, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an exploration you can embark on today.
Together is available to watch on Hulu's platform at present.
