Many of us have been curious to see what Together is about. We know it’s a horror movie starring real-life couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco with a very vague summary. So, most of us showed up not knowing what subgenre it would be. Or even an expectation of what type of shenanigans we were looking at. Luckily, the movie is fun, gross, and fantastic.
Together follows Tim and Millie (Franco and Brie), who have been together for a long time. While neither seem to be getting what they need out of the relationship, they are too co-dependent to separate. This is why they are uprooting their lives to move to the country for Millie’s new job. She is the breadwinner who financially supports Tim as he holds onto hope that his band will make it someday. Because this is a horror movie, the couple soon discover their new area has some unexpected danger. As their relationship woes bubble to the surface, they must work together to fight a supernatural force with a sinister plan for the both of them.
It Takes Two
Writer-director Michael Shanks has a fun script on his hands. It is an exploration of the types of unhealthy long-term relationships that many people find themselves in. On the surface, these situationships are fine, but they usually have two people going through the motions. They have settled into something comfortable and refuse to address their issues and ask the important conversations. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Tim and Millie need to break up, but it does make us wonder why they stay together. Like most of our friends who we silently judge, we want to pull them aside and ask, “Are you happy?”
Casting a real-life couple is sometimes a super gimmicky move that backfires. However, Brie and Franco make it work, which is great because we spend almost the whole film with Tim and Millie. We go from spying on their shaky relationship to watching them work together to survive this unnatural force. Having chemistry and realistic couple shorthand keeps us invested. We buy that these two are close, and a part of us wants them to figure it out, even though their relationship looks like it has run its course from the second we meet them. The relationship feels lived in, which sells everything Together puts them through, and earns the ending.
Supernatural Hands Were Thrown
Because Together has such a small cast, the majority of the film is basically a two-hander. Even casual filmgoers have seen Franco and Brie work together over the years. Maybe it’s my genre bias showing, but I think they excel in horror. I enjoyed The Rental (which Brie starred in and Franco directed and co-wrote). That was a huge reason I leaned in when I heard they were doing a no-holds-barred horror movie. This project relies on both actors being in it as this force throws supernatural hands at their characters. While this is a team effort, I have to highlight Brie’s performance because she did not come to play.
Alison Brie has never been better. This movie provides her with a vehicle that many of her post-Community roles have not. This film hinges on her being vulnerable and funny, and Brie delivers at every turn. We can almost see the wheels in her character’s head turn as she supports Tim but wonders if he will ever show up for her. We get Millie’s frustration, hopelessness, etc. because Brie has the most emotive eyes in the game as she cuts to the heart of her character like a surgeon. Millie goes through it in Together, but Brie keeps her grounded even in the face of the fantastical. While this movie is about a couple, she pulls ahead as the lead. We love to see it.
Should You Swipe Right?
Together feels like a spiritual sibling to Significant Other in that we thought we knew the score but were dead wrong. I know Together grows into a different beast than the other movie. However, at their core, they are about a couple at a crossroads who discover how much they still mean to each other under some pretty wild circumstances. I do not want to spoil the gross, gooey, great, and giggly mess our protagonists find themselves in. I also do not want to ruin the ending, which is mostly a badass way to end the film. However, I have a minor note if you will bear with me as I tiptoe around a major plot point.
Shanks does an excellent job of teasing what is happening between this couple in their new home. Even the way the camera frames some of the events is almost burlesque-like, allowing the special effects to look great in small doses. However, because the ending is so big and bold, I wish we could have kept seeing parts of the thing I refuse to spoil for you. Instead, they attempted to get it all on-screen at once, but the less is more approach proved to be the best option. This pulled me out for a second, but not enough to stop me from enjoying the film. Also, I’m unsure if there is a way to effectively show us what that was supposed to be on a larger scale.
While parts of the story were obvious, and we even predicted an on-the-nose needle drop, Together is a damn good time. It gets right into the messiness of relationships and takes it some wild body horror places. The film is also a bonkers playground for Brie to remind people she has a well of (often underutilized) talent.
