TOGETHER Is Brutal, Beautiful, and Exactly What Horror Needed

🎬 CLENCH Reviews: Together (2025)

Rating: ★★★★★ (5 Stars) | Score: 94%

We had the pleasure of attending an advanced screening of Together, Michael Shanks’ bold and unsettling directorial debut — and let us be the first to say: this is one of the most affecting horror films of the year.

Shanks has penned a tight, emotionally intelligent script that doesn’t waste a moment. The dialogue feels lived-in, natural — not a single line rings false. The characters are layered and deeply competent; their choices make sense, their motivations are clear, and yet their journey remains gripping from start to finish. There's a slow-creeping dread that hums beneath every scene, but it’s the couple’s optimism — even as their world, and bodies, begin to unravel — that keeps you watching with fascination and, oddly enough, hope.

This isn’t a story about what happens — the title already hints at the destination. The brilliance lies in how we get there. And Together takes that question and builds a visceral, intimate journey out of it.

At the heart of the film are real-life married actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco, whose off-screen bond translates into remarkable on-screen chemistry. Their familiarity with one another doesn’t just enhance the performances — it elevates the entire film. They push each other in ways that feel instinctive and raw, engaging physically and emotionally in scenes that most actors might shy away from. And yet it never feels performative — it reads as deeply authentic.

The body horror in Together is top-tier — grotesque, mesmerizing, and unrelenting. Fans of The Substance will find themselves in familiar territory, but dare we say, Together might surpass it. What sets this film apart is its groundedness. No transformation is hidden in shadows. The horror is on full display, in daylight and darkness alike. The audience sees everything — and it's that transparency that makes it all the more disturbing.

There are moments that feel like a tug-of-war between the characters’ identities and bodies, but Shanks shoots these scenes with an elegance that evokes a kind of tragic ballet. The physical terror is matched beat-for-beat by emotional intimacy. It’s gruesome, yes — but it’s also hauntingly beautiful.

Is Together reinventing the genre? No. But it doesn’t need to. What it does is take a familiar idea and tell it in a way that feels fresh, deliberate, and masterfully executed. There are a few unanswered questions, even a couple potential plot holes, but the film's strengths are so commanding, you don’t mind. You trust it — and that’s rare.

Final Verdict:
Together is a daring, stylish, and deeply human entry into the body horror genre. It may be Shanks’ first feature, but it feels like the work of a seasoned auteur. We give it 5 stars and a confident 94%. This is one you don’t want to watch alone.