Together Review (2025)

Together (2025)

Director: Michael Shanks Writer: Michael Shanks Cast: Dave Franco, Alison Brie

A going-away party, matching outfits, trouble with intimacy and a nightmare. Michael Shank's debut feature film is a treat; it isn't just a delightful, spooky ride, but a film full of love and heart.

Alison Brie and Dave Franco are married in real life, and this is evident in their chemistry as Millie and Tim, a 30-something-year-old couple where one has their shit together, and one doesn't. Millie is a teacher; she wants to shape young minds. Tim is a 35-year-old 'rock star' who is suffering from trauma; he should be in therapy, but he isn't, and that's clear throughout the film. They take the plunge and move out of the city to a small town, in a beautiful home, and do what every couple does when they are lost in their relationship - go on a hike, fall into a creepy hole and naturally, Tim drinks the cave-pool water.

Franco and Brie are effortlessly believable as a couple facing intimacy that has crossed into emotional codependency. Their love becomes monstrous as Tim's body craves fusion in disturbingly inventive ways. Their natural chemistry and humour with each other give genuine emotional depth to their interactions, and their real-life bond translates exceptionally well on screen, showcasing their distress and darkly comedic exchanges that are both relatable and compelling. They're incredibly frustrated with their relationship, their lack of intimacy, their need for one another and that they have not progressed in their lives - both emotionally and mentally as their beings. Tim feels held back by Millie. Millie feels like she has to take care of Tim. This anxiety and emotional turmoil with one another plays out brilliantly as their once-loving partnership devolves into a literal entanglement. They cannot live with each other, but they cannot live without each other either.

Cinematographer Germain McMicking crafted a visually arresting film, using moody lighting, clever frames, and darkened corners to create isolation, claustrophobic feelings and heightened intimacy. You can feel the isolation of Millie and Tim's increasingly bizarre situation. Every frame has a purpose; it's thoughtfully composed and keeps you engaged in their dilemma while never taking away from the creeping dread.

What stands out about Together is the unapologetic commitment to a metaphor taken to its most extreme conclusion: the line between co-dependency, independence and the concept of having a soulmate. What happens when we meet that person we feel like we cannot live without? How do we grow together, support one another, love one another, without feeling like pieces of ourselves have been taken away? Shanks balances the love, the tension, and the cringe-inducing visuals with a sense of humour.

Together is a bold and original IP that nearly reinvents horror-comedy. Intimacy gone wrong, perfect laugh cues, well-done humour, and everything wrapped up in a nice little flesh bow.

4.5/5