Together

The 2020s have seen something of a resurgence in the body horror subgenre, from the Oscar-winning masterpiece The Substance, to the stunning Palme d’Or-winner Titane. This decade has also given us not one, but two generations of Cronenberg’s delivering genre work, with Brandon Cronenberg’s chilling Possessor, and father, David, the godfather of modern body horror, with both Crimes of the Future and this year’s The Shrouds. The latest slice of genre cinema exploiting the boundaries of flesh comes from first-time feature filmmaker Michael Shanks. Starring real-life married couple Dave Franco and Allison Brie, the debut film from Shanks uses the genre to explore themes regarding co-dependency and toxic relationships. What results is an uneven, yet memorably icky film that might leave couples wanting to examine their own relationships.

Courtesy Neon

Tim (Dave Franco) is a struggling musician in his mid-30’s trying to make his dreams a reality. Overcome with anxiety and grief after the tragic death of his parents, Tim leans heavily on his girlfriend Millie (Allison Brie) to get by. Having been together for a decade now, the relationship has stalled with Tim having intimacy and commitment issues. When Millie gets a teaching job on the opposite side of the state, the couple pack up and move to a small town, away from their close friends. Once they’re settled into their countryside home, Tim and Millie decide to go on a hike in the woods where they become stranded in a hidden cave. In the creepy cave, they discover the remains of what was once a church, alongside a mysterious artifact that appears to be some holy relic. When they decide to save their energy and stay the night in the cave after discovering a large puddle of seemingly clean water, Tim and Millie wake up to find both of their legs stuck together. After painfully pulling apart, they escape from the cave, only to find some strange presence or entity is literally pulling them together. Their skin begins to merge, as if something is attempting to transform them into one body, and they often struggle to maintain their own sense of gravity when separated for long stretches of time. The couple is left to figure out what exactly is happening to them and how to stop it; if they even can.

Together is an assured and impressive filmmaking debut from writer/director Michael Shanks. Using body horror to illustrate a story of how co-dependency can be toxic and equally destructive, Shanks crafts an unnerving and overall effective piece of genre filmmaking. In an early scene, Tim utters to his friend, “when I die, I don’t want someone else’s life to flash before my eyes”, which is a startling admission that stands as the film’s thesis. While there are many ideas left untouched by the film’s finale, other ideas are explored in distinct, formally audacious fashion. Shanks is not making a particularly subtle film, but the way he goes about his metaphorical imagery is freakish and even witty at times. The debuting filmmaker has a slightly quirky sensibility that gives way to some welcoming chuckles during the most uncomfortable and bloody sequences. An intimate encounter in a bathroom stall is properly squirm-inducing and likely to dissuade any couple in the audience from seeking out bathroom sex in the near-future. Other sticky situations arrive with notable use of tension and gross-out payoffs. Still, one can’t help but wish Shanks had delivered a bit more consistent thrills or shocks, using most of his cache for the, admittedly, striking final act.

Courtesy Neon

As you could surmise by the premise, there are some notable sequences of gnarly body horror, with Shanks adding a number of unique, intriguing ideas and concepts to the genre. The film crescendos with a twisted and memorable finale that showcases superb make-up effects and technical wizardry that allows the high-concept to flourish. Shanks is able to achieve a healthy dosage of genuinely disturbing and stylistically original imagery here. His sense of humor is a refreshing touch, as well. There is a sense of fun to be had amidst the extremely bizarre premise, which Shanks provides in spades during his closing act. One sequence in particular guarantees you’ll never hear the Spice Girls “2 Become 1” the same way ever again. Together is even topped off with a hilarious, if somewhat expected, final image that concludes the film on a high note.

Yet, for a film that aims for a slow-burn approach to horror, it fails to consistently engage the viewer with a lack of atmosphere or all-encompassing sense of terror. The pacing in the first hour tends to drag and Shanks doesn’t quite have the narrative focus to allow his many themes to coalesce into a satisfying whole. Having the meta-subtextual layer of seeing a real-life married couple going through this particular ordeal is refreshing to behold. Both Franco and Brie are giving terrific work, one that clearly is emboldened by the trust they have in each other. The emotional toll that is inflicted upon them takes significant weight on the characters, allowing both actors to dig into some distressing psychological states. These are two intense, physically demanding performances that have the burden of attempting to make up for the lack of balance in their respective characters. Tim and Mille aren’t given a rich enough backstory or sense of urgency in their presented relationship to warrant such an emotionally taxing film. Millie is not given nearly the extensive writing treatment that Tim has, with Brie playing a character whose motivations are not fully illustrated. Early on, we hear Millie telling her best friend that she still loves Tim and wants to be with him, but the writing doesn’t give her ultimate goals and aspirations much dimension beyond flimsy lip service.

Courtesy Neon

Together doesn’t live up to the hype that this is some new horror classic, but it is a sharply acted and effective piece of body horror. Writer/director Michael Shanks crafts enough lingering shocks and unique concepts to the genre, despite not being as scary or insightful as one would hope. It may not be as emotionally grueling as it could have been and the overall results tend to be greater than the sum of their parts, but there’s enough here to warrant seeking out.

Together is now playing in theaters.