The Scream Queen

When the Spice Girls released ‘2 become 1’ in 1996, I don’t think they ever intended for it to be taken so literally. But, 29 years down the line, Michael Shanks new body horror Together does just that. Exploring the woes of romantic complacency, Together sees real life couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, partners who have become co-dependently stuck in their ways for better or for worse. And, when a bid to save their relationship takes a gruesome turn, its a strong argument towards the latter.

* Spoilers ahead!

We all know those couples that just refuse to split up, despite clearly growing apart. It is, in fact, more tragic to proverbially beat the dead horse. But that is what 30-somethings Tim and Millie keep doing; everyone around them knows it, and deep down, so do they. Thus, in a bid to save their relationship, they move out to the countryside where Millie has taken a teaching placement, dragging failed musician Tim along with her despite his clear reservations about leaving his old hopes and dreams behind. The resentment between them is obvious, as both hold each other back in different ways. Maybe they were never meant to be. Maybe it would be easier if they just separated. As Millie points out, the longer it goes on, the more painful it becomes. However, her point comes full circle in the most horrifying of ways, as after they fall into a mysteriously cultish cave, the two cannot seem stay apart (literally). It may sound like a set up for the perfect romance rekindling, but we all know that this is hardly The Notebook. And thus, the horror’s of becoming stuck together begin, power tools and all.

Body horror has seen quite the renaissance in recent years, with releases such as Crimes of the Future (2022) from seasoned veteran David Cronenberg, Possessor (2020) from Cronenberg’s own son Brandon, following in his father’s footsteps, as well as feminist takes such as Titane (2021) by Julia Ducournau and The Substance (2024) by Coralie Fargeat, both helping pave the way for female perspective in the subgenre. Even earlier this year, the Phillipou’s sophomore feature Bring Her Back (2025) featured all the blood squelching bodily fluids required to make you wince away. Michael Shanks’ Together certainly isn’t entering an oversaturated market by any means, but it does have a lot of great competition already out there. So, how does it compare? Well, for one, Together brings a unique perspective by focusing its narrative on relationships and the effect they have on us. The themes are about as subtle as a sledgehammer (or maybe in this case an electric saw) but subtlety is, after all, the antithesis of body horror. Casting Alison Brie and Dave Franco, a real life couple of 13 years, was an ingenious move. The pair slot into the roles with all the ease and comfort that comes from being in a long-term relationship, undeniably understanding their roles through and through. While both play characters that they are typically typecast for, Brie a more straight-laced intelligent type to Franco’s nonchalant young-at-heart type, they undeniably understand their characters and what makes them tick. But most important of all, they understand one another, and our association with their real-life coupling allows us to fully immerse in their world.

But the question remains; how does Together’s elements of body horror compare to the gut-churning, bone-crunching, viscerally horrifying counterparts? There is certainly no shortage of gross-out moments in the film. When the two ultimately become conjoined in a way where they can’t simply rip themselves apart (I’m looking at you, bathroom scene) they use Chekhov’s electric saw to separate themselves; as Millie says once more, the longer they wait the harder it will become to do so. However, the scene cuts away before we witness too much, as we see them sitting, separated, eating. It is one of the many moments of jarring humour that Shanks infuses through the script, never allowing things to become too bobbed down in seriousness. The film has themes dealing with parental death and the subsequent mental health issues that arise from such generational trauma; anxiety, panic attacks, depression. And although Together could’ve easily gone down the same path as the many films which have tried to copy Ari Aster’s modern classic Hereditary, it knows audiences have seen it all too much recently. Shanks treats these aspects with respect and care, but makes a point of not dwelling so much that they hold back the narrative at hand. Because Together is surprisingly tongue-in-cheek; the dialogue contains many moments which come back to bite Millie and Tim in the most sickeningly clever of ways.

But for all the ways that Together commits, it still never feels like enough. Together is the unfortunate victim of a trailer and marketing campaign that gives away all of the greatest moments before the film has even been released. The body horror is always on the edge of being truly memorable but never quite reaches that status as Shanks never takes it far enough to complete the gag. The gross out scenes are torn away from audiences all too quickly, and although a film should never rely on gore or shock value to entertain audiences, with a premise as bizarre as this it feels like an underwhelming and unremarkable foray into body horror. Together will undoubtedly draw comparisons to its closest counterpart The Substance, which ironically is about one person splitting into two. Maybe it’s unfair to compare two entirely separate pieces of filmmaking, but after seeing the latter, it is easy to see the former’s pitfalls. Where The Substance’s last act goes completely balls-to-the-wall, Together’s last act begins to fall apart. Like so many other horror films being released today, the ending of Together doesn’t quite land. As Millie and Tim realise they can’t live without each other, they accept their fate and merge into one, while the Spice Girls’ ‘2 Become 1’ plays in the background. It felt like an inevitability that they would eventually become one body, and the audio gag of the UK’s 1996 number one Christmas single masterfully maintains the tone through to the very end. The intertwining of their eyelashes is an inventive beginning to the sequence, but it is a shame that they zoom out and show us the full body transformation; a not-so-great CGI effect that undermines the otherwise great practical effects used throughout. But it doesn’t end there, as I’m sure everyone wants to know; what does the Millie/Tim hybrid look like? Well, in the last shot we find out, and…. it’s just a normal person? It’s a disappointing reveal even if it is the most logical outcome, as something more akin to Monstro-Elizasue would have been more fun. Alas, Shanks makes a respectable effort to shake off the inevitable comparisons between the two by giving us an ending completely the opposite to that of The Substance. Sadly, however, it doesn’t work in Shanks’ favour, as the finale fails to unify the story in a satisfying way.

Final Verdict:

If you’re looking for the perfect film for date night, maybe skip Together. While this body horror is tinged with romance, it mostly makes a gruesome argument for staying single. With possibly the best Spice Girls needle drop of all time, Together serves some tongue-in-cheek desserts alongside its gory main course. But Together isn’t quite the full meal, as certain aspects will leave you feeling empty long after leaving the cinema. It never quite hits the spot, but nonetheless it’s a commendable venture into the horrors of relationship complacency. So, if you’re relationship has gone stale but you just can’t bring yourself to breakup, try watching Together – otherwise you might just end up stuck with one another forever.