'Together' review: Alison Brie & Dave Franco are drawn to each other

SF Studios

Finally, a perfect new movie for your perfect date night at the cinema. Get ready to carry those moving boxes because there's a new home to move into in Together, a body horror for those looking for a little bit of gooey romance. Millie (Alison Brie) and Tim (Dave Franco) are a couple who have been together for a while now, her being a teacher and him being a struggling musical artist. There's a cringeworthy but ultimately a successful proposal and they're also moving away from the city to the countryside because Millie's received a new full-time teaching job. Their relationship is lacking passion and harmony at the moment, and things get even weirder and worse after they get stuck in a cave for a night during a hiking trip in the nearby forest. Mysterious, supernatural elements appear afterwards and alter their minds, souls and perhaps even their bodies.

Once the engine heats up and the oddities emerge, Together morphs into an engaging blend of ick, horror and even slapstick. With his first feature, writer-director Michael Shanks shows plenty of promise, particularly in the latter role. Simply in terms of its entertainment value, the film is a real jolt as the helmer and his collaborators embrace both the absurd and the gross. There's a fair bit of eerie imagery from a few jump scares to the bodily stuff, captured by cinematographer Germain McMicking with aggressive camera movement and a good balance between dark and light, something that isn't exactly a given nowadays. It is, however, the wonderful wizardry of FX makeup and SFX—undoubtedly bolstered by well-designed VFX—that take the centre stage. Those scenes are proper showstoppers and a hell of a time at the movies, inviting oohs, aahs, ewws, nervous laughter and maybe a scream or two.

While the big picture is intact, Shanks does still have room to grow in some areas. The script uses codependency in relationships as a springboard really effectively, and then touches on modern gender roles, but much of that gets a bit murky when folk horror and supernatural elements are thrown in as well. Millie's colleague Jamie (Damon Herriman) becomes a bigger part of the equation as a result and we get rougher scenes with exposition and subpar dialogue, which doesn't quite mesh with scenes featuring Millie and Tim. The overall story is catchy and clever, and there's a subtle yet extremely thoughtful notion about recognising codependency, which can then prevent a couple from turning into a monster. But a quick warning: you have to endure some bland characterisations, tonal swings that don't work and plotting that isn't interesting enough.

Thankfully the ending is satisfying and stylish, though, which helps a ton. If you see the film with your better (or worse) half, you might have to have an awkward conversation with them, but at the very least you'll have seen a great motion picture together. And that, my friends, is never a bad thing.

Smileys: Directing, makeup, Alison Brie, story

Frowneys: Characterisation

A two-in-one shampoo will also cause similar issues for your skin.

4.0/5

Where to watch:

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