‘Together’ Review – The Most Fun You’ll Have At The Cinema This Year [Sundance 2025]

The highlight of Sundance’s 2025 Midnights section absolutely has to be Together starring real-life married couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Michael Shanks’ directorial debut became the talk of the festival, sparking a bidding war ultimately won by NEON who will distribute the film later this year. Its reputation of being the most fun film shown at Sundance this year created a ton of buzz, and it certainly paid off.

This piece of counterprogramming to the typically depressing Sundance fare is absolutely worth the hype. It follows Tim (Franco) and Millie (Brie) as a long-term dating couple who move from New York City to the countryside of Upstate New York for Millie to pursue a teaching opportunity at an amazing high school. Tim is a struggling musician who hasn’t contributed much by way of finances recently, so there’s already some tension between the couple going into this massive life change. 

As you might expect, a couple from the big city moving to a big house in a small town doesn’t quite bode well vibes-wise. Strange noises and scents throughout the house lead Tim to discover a harrowing sight that I won’t spoil here that begins the gross-out fest of the year. The real trouble begins when they decide to go for a hike in the woods surrounding their house. The pair get lost during heavy rainfall and plummet into an underground cave with a mysterious aura. Much to their surprise, it has a pool of drinkable water located inside and they’re able to wait out the storm through the night. After emerging from the cave they both start to feel strange and are suddenly drawn to one another in ways they haven’t been in months. 

Together is an incredibly surprising film that combines gross-out body horror, incredible humor, and amazing commentary on human intimacy and connection. It’s a rare mixture of theme and substance that is sure to have audiences laughing, gagging, and tearing up in the same breath. 

No spoilers to be found here on the nature of the body horror, but with a duo like Brie and Franco you know you’re in for some zany, escalated back and forth scenes. Their off-screen relationship pays dividends here as even the moments their characters aren’t getting along have amazing chemistry. It takes years of knowing someone to get to this level of intimacy even when one side of the equation is more distant than normal. 

We’ve all had periods of relationships or friendships like Tim and Millie are having here. One person continuously seeks connection and affection from the other and they have some mental block that makes them unable to reciprocate. It says nothing about their love for the other, but it is heartbreaking to experience. Despite this distance, you can see a longing in Tim towards Millie and that he truly wants to reconnect. They still have outrageously joyous moments together that remind them of simpler times in their long relationship. 

I want to shout out the main supporting actor of the film, Damon Herriman. He plays Jamie, a friendly teacher who works at the same school as Millie and turns out to be their neighbor from down the street. His quirky demeanor adds a lot of interesting material to the film and offers another source for the couple to bounce off of, especially during an impromptu dinner scene where he gets invited in after popping by to say hello. He seems taken with Millie from the moment they meet on her first day of work, and Tim immediately notices his fascination with her once all three of them are in the same room. Herriman embodies the weird, charming vibes of the small town and acts as the only friend either of them make during the course of the film.

Michael Shanks’ debut feature Together is the best time you’ll have in a theater this year. It’s fun, hilarious, and has some of the most disturbing body horror images of the decade. After NEON acquired the film for a reported $17 million out of Sundance, it looks to have a release in early August. Do NOT miss the opportunity to see this with a crowd on the biggest screen possible.

Together had its World Premiere in the Midnight section of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

Director: Michael Shanks

Writer: Michael Shanks

Rated: NR

Runtime: 102m