The first time I saw the trailer for Together, I laughed. Then I gasped. Then I sat in silence, staring at my screen, wondering what fresh hell Michael Shanks had just unleashed. Neon’s latest teaser for the film—a twisted love story masquerading as a romantic photo album—is a masterclass in misdirection. Soft whispers of affection, sun-dappled kisses, and then… well, we don’t quite see the “then.” And that’s the point.
This isn’t just another horror movie. It’s a relationship movie—one where the monsters aren’t lurking in the shadows but growing under the skin of love itself. Alison Brie and Dave Franco, a real-life couple playing a fictional one, bring an eerie authenticity to their roles as partners whose move to the countryside spirals into a surreal, flesh-warping odyssey. The trailer, cleverly cut like a nostalgic scrapbook, lulls you into a false sense of security before yanking the rug out with a single, unsettling frame. (No spoilers, but your stomach will drop.)
Shanks, an Australian filmmaker with a knack for stop-motion grotesquerie (Rebooted), makes his feature debut here, and it’s already clear he’s playing for keeps. Sundance audiences in January 2025 called it “devilishly exuberant,” and SXSW doubled down on the praise. The buzz isn’t just hype—it’s the kind of word-of-mouth that turns midnight screenings into cult events. And with Neon dropping it in theaters on July 30, 2025, just in time for summer’s sweltering dread, Together feels like a dare: Bring someone you love. See what happens.
What’s most striking isn’t the body horror (though early reviews promise it’s gnarly), but how Shanks uses it to literalize the slow, creeping distortions of intimacy. Love reshapes us—sometimes beautifully, sometimes horrifically. Together seems to ask: What if that reshaping wasn’t metaphorical? What if your partner’s quirks became physical mutations? It’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind meets The Fly, with a dash of Hereditary’s family-as-horror DNA.
The film’s festival run—Sundance (January 2025), SXSW (March 2025)—has been a victory lap for Shanks, but the real test comes this summer. Horror-comedies live or die by their balance, and Together’s trailer nails the tone: tender, funny, and deeply wrong. The less you know, the better. Just be ready to squirm.
So, who’s into this? Anyone who’s ever felt love curdle into something unrecognizable. Or anyone who just wants to watch two charming actors dissolve into existential terror. Either way, bring a date. If they stay through the credits, they’re a keeper.
