Together

Together
Starring Dave Franco, Alison Brie, Damon Herriman, Mia Morrissey
Directed by Michael Shanks

Movies that feature actors who are already together in real life add an extra sense of realism that cannot be duplicated no matter how great the actors are. "A Quiet Place" proved this with John Krasinski and his real-life wife Emily Blunt playing a married couple, and they're more believable because they actually are. "Together" is one such movie, as real-life married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie play a couple here, but this time there's some serious tensions that threaten to pull them apart - only to then encounter a strange entity that begins pulling them together.

Enjoying life in the big city, Tim (Dave Franco) is a thirty-something wannabe musician who can't drive a car, and his girlfriend Millie (Alison Brie) has taken a lucrative teaching job in the country - and Tim seems hesitant to leave his life behind. The two struggle from the get-go, and after they move into their new secluded country home their relationship continues to deteriorate - until they go on a hike and accidentally falls into a pit with a strange lake inside. Tim drinks from it, and almost immediately he finds that he's connecting with Millie in horrifying ways - not only are their skin combining, but when Millie goes away to work, Tim's body instinctively desires to follow, even though there's physical barriers in the way. Soon, Millie too becomes drawn to Tim as their bodies begin to morph into one, as they try to figure out what's happening before their bodies become forever entwined together. 

There's a lot of buzz about this movie, and one deeply negative one. Dave Franco and Alison Brie - who also co-produced the movie, are facing a lawsuit from StudioFest for copyright infringement, claiming they ripped off their 2023 film "Better Half" about a couple being physically fused together. They claim that Franco and Brie were pitched "Better Half" in 2020 but turned it down, instead later producing "Together" with a different writer. While still in litigation, it created a black cloud over the production. Despite this, the movie gained a nationwide release, and the results is something that David Cronenberg would be proud of: a darkly humorous body horror film that showcases the acting talent and, most importantly, the physicality talent of Franco and Brie in unforgettable ways.

The past decade has seen different aspects of dating and commitment, from the dangers of online dating in "Fresh" to the no-strings situationship in "Oh, Hi!" and "Together" looks at a relationship on the rocks that forcefully begins pulling them together. It's a unique blend when you see these two people who do love one another but also have some deep-seeded issues. Millie is the breadwinner in the relationship, while Tim is the one stuck in his twenties thinking he'll make a name for himself in the music industry, but doesn't even have a driver's license. You sense both the love and the animosity between the two, and Franco and Brie deliver compelling, layered performances.

Yet what makes "Together" so intriguing is how Tim and Millie find themselves being physically drawn together. Their bodies contort in horrific ways and blend together that will make most people squirm, unless they're fans of Cronenberg - which to them it's just an average Tuesday. Still, it's an impressive feat for the married couple to contort their bodies in the ways they do, and the practical effects are stunning and top notch. At a scant runtime as well the movie moves at a brisk pace and doesn't have time to relax, but the terror amplifies from scene to scene leaving you wondering what's happening and how it'll all end up. 

The Score: A