Together
Among a string of summer blockbusters snugly sits Together, an entertaining indie flick with big names and high stakes at play. This satirical horror romance by Australian writer-director Michael Shanks marks his feature directorial debut, one that has landed his actor-producer leads Dave Franco and Alison Brie in hot water over an alleged copyright infringement case.
Controversy aside, it pulls from the bag of tricks made famous by countless body horror counterparts and borrows a lot of familiar story beats from the horror handbook. Expect fake-outs, predictable pacing, and a straightforward resolution. Do not let this deter, though, from an otherwise solid, unsettling watch with a gross-out factor owed to some impressive prosthetics work – as teased in marketing materials – akin to The Substance’s Monstro Elisasue, or Society’s “shunting” scenes.
Co-dependency, complacency and commitment are the major themes of this weird and wacky love story set in lush Aussie woodlands. Tensions rise between troubled long-term partners Tim (Franco) and Millie (Brie) when a move to the countryside – and an encounter with an unrelenting force – tests their limits and threatens their very being.
Together’s two stars, grounded by a real-life relationship dynamic, comfortably get under each other’s skin and carry this rather well-constructed allegory of modern dating with ease. Even in the most nightmarish of circumstances and transformations, in a kinetic push-pull display of contorted bodies and corrupted flesh, subtle comedic quips of millennial humour shine through.
Now that body horror is being so favoured in this current day and age, Together makes for a satisfying companion watch to other, more outstanding pictures. It is perfectly competent on a technical level, but suffers as a result of its safe framework and altogether abrupt finish. Still, though it may not reinvent the wheel, it delivers on account of spirited direction, committed performances and a playful embrace of the genre’s twisted charm.
Douglas Jardim
Together is released nationwide on 15th August 2025.
Watch the trailer for Together here:
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