We present a dare for long-term couples who appreciate scary movies: Sit down with your loved one and watch Together. The independent film success of 2025 recently had its streaming debut via Hulu. At first glance, it could look like conventional biological terror, but within Together resides a profound contemplation about our choices in loving one another.
A Directorial Debut Exploring Partnership Complexities
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as a couple named Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have remained a couple for over ten years. Married in real life in 2017, the two stars contribute a special spark to their roles, expertly portraying both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The narrative starts when Tim and Millie transition from the big city to the country for Millie’s job. A somewhat stereotypical story element, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the tropes cease. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a movie featuring biological frights.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While walking near their new home, a violent storm occurs, and Millie and Tim discover an subterranean cavern. After being trapped overnight there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity starts to affect the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past simple connection.
The complete narrative is a gradually intensifying horror experience, blending moments of dreamlike terrors, gross (but never too gross) body horror, and surprisingly comedic dialogue (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). The director weaves these elements together seamlessly and delivers them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A large part of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Her self-assurance and feeling of intimacy is suffering due to a emotional and physical gap. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his reluctance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career slowly bubbles to the surface.
In contrast, Tim's character senses confinement and isolated by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve moved to the country and distant from his network of friends. He is terrified of the concept of completely losing his sense of self in Millie. This fear is intensified by the fact he can’t drive and needs Millie for transportation.
The film's most intelligent aspect is that he avoids making Tim or Millie the clear bad guy.
Both characters grapple with the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships a decade in. At their core, they still love one another. They share moments of joy, offer support, and open up at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together represent these fears of excessive reliance and fully committing to another person, the allegory never feels overly obvious or heavy-handed. Instead, these ickier, creepier moments provide a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in a mutually beneficial way.
A Debated Finale
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has left audiences divided on the movie's final takeaway about unhealthy partnerships. Accounts suggest that unattached audience members have understood the narrative as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. Conversely, some couples experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
If you are alone or with a partner, your own response could potentially serve as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and feel frustration, or simply turn to your partner and state, “I understand that choice”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an exploration you can experience right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu now.
