Consider this a challenge for partners in committed relationships who appreciate horror films: Settle in with your partner and stream Together. This independent film success of 2025 just made its streaming debut on Hulu. Outwardly, it may seem like standard physical horror, but inside Together resides a profound examination about our choices in loving one another.
A Debut Feature Delving into Partnership Complexities
Together is the first full-length movie for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It features Dave Franco and Alison Brie as Tim and Millie, an unmarried couple that have remained a couple for a decade. Having wed in reality in 2017, the two stars bring a unique chemistry to their characters, skillfully embodying both the good and bad of a long-term relationship.
The narrative begins when the couple relocate from the urban environment to the countryside for professional reasons. A commonly used plot device, sure, but that’s largely where the conventions conclude. Together transforms into as much a deep dive into the psyche of the partnership as it is a body horror flick.
An Otherworldly Trigger
While hiking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and the protagonists tumble into an subterranean cavern. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a supernatural entity takes hold of the pair. This force creates a supernatural closeness between them that goes exceeding typical partnership.
The whole movie is a slow burn horror experience, blending moments of fever-dream horrors, disturbing (but never too gross) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes amidst something grotesque). The director orchestrates these parts neatly and wraps them up in a slowly mounting atmosphere of fear.
Layered Performances
A significant portion of Together is only the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate numerous complexities to the characters’ relationship. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a lack of intimacy. Her underlying frustration of Tim for his hesitance to focus on anything other than his floundering music career inexorably rises.
Tim, on the other hand senses confinement and isolated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and distant from his network of friends. He dreads the notion of utterly sacrificing his sense of self in Millie. This fear is intensified by the circumstance he lacks a driver's license and is dependent on Millie for transportation.
The director's cleverest decision is that he refrains from painting one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Tim and Millie grapple with the sort of issues that come with any relationship a decade in. Fundamentally, they still love each other. They find humor with each other, provide solace, and are vulnerable at times. But under the surface, there’s an unavoidable feeling of questioning about their bond.
Thematic Depth
While the supernatural forces in Together represent these fears of codependency and totally devoting oneself to another person, the symbolism does not come across as hamfisted or pretentious. Instead, these visceral horror elements offer a perfect parallel to the relationship narrative. Both the supernatural and the personal enhance each other in harmony.
A Divisive Ending
Together’s ending, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that those not in relationships have seen the movie as a strong argument for avoiding commitment. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own reaction could act as a great barometer of how you view relationships. Will the ending inspire a sense of discomfort and fear, or a positive outlook on love? Will you see yourself in one of the characters and yell at the screen, or simply turn to your other half and state, “I’d do that for you”?
Regardless of the outcome, Together is an exploration you can undertake right now.
Together is currently playing on Hulu's platform at present.
