There are romances that grow sweeter with time, and then there’s Together—a film that imagines what happens when love literally consumes you. Directed by Australian filmmaker Michael Shanks, this blend of body horror and pitch-black comedy hits cinemas on 13 August, after first shocking audiences at Sundance earlier this year.
The story follows Millie, a primary school teacher, and Tim, a struggling musician, who decide to trade city life for the countryside in a last-ditch effort to save their relationship. A simple hike, a hidden pool of water, and suddenly the couple find themselves drawn to each other in a way that’s far from metaphorical. Their bodies begin to merge, limb by limb, in a grotesque yet oddly tender transformation. It’s an unsettling take on co-dependency, where devotion turns into a nightmare.
Between laughter and horror
Shanks has admitted he didn’t initially plan to mix humour with the grotesque. His early drafts aimed for pure terror. But as he told Variety, the premise was “so absurd” that it cried out for a balance of chills and darkly comic relief. And it works: the queasy prosthetics and practical effects of the couple’s physical fusion are offset by the natural chemistry of actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco—partners both on screen and off.
The film is already winning critics over. On Rotten Tomatoes, it boasts close to a 90% approval rating, while Metacritic places it around 75/100. For many, the blend of genres makes it stand out in a crowded market of horror films that often play it safe. It’s the kind of movie that can make you squirm and laugh within the same breath—a rare feat.
A personal experiment in filmmaking
Part of what makes Together feel so unsettling is the intimacy of its inspiration. Shanks has revealed that he drew on his own long-term relationship while writing the script. Approaching a decade with his partner, he found himself noticing how couples often collapse into shared routines—same friends, same tastes, same air, even. This creeping sameness, both comforting and suffocating, became the kernel of the film’s surreal horror.
In that sense, the movie is as much about relationships as it is about gore. Anyone who’s ever felt swallowed by love—or perhaps smothered by it—may recognise the allegory, though hopefully not the sticky prosthetics.
The shadow of plagiarism claims
But not everything about the film’s release has been celebratory. Together has landed in the middle of a copyright storm, accused of borrowing heavily from Better Half, a 2023 indie film by writer-director Patrick Henry Phelan. His project also followed a couple who discover their bodies are physically linked.
According to the complaint, the similarities go far beyond coincidence, covering “plot, themes, characters, dialogue, mood, setting, pacing and events.” Shanks has strongly denied the allegations, insisting he wrote and registered his script back in 2019, long before even meeting Franco. For now, the dispute remains unresolved, adding an extra layer of drama around the film’s arrival.
Why it’s one to watch
Controversy aside, Together is shaping up to be one of the boldest releases of the summer. Equal parts disturbing and darkly funny, it offers a new twist on how cinema explores intimacy, dependence and identity. If you’ve ever wondered how far love can go before it turns monstrous, this might be the film to find out—though perhaps not on a first date.
