Common Sense Media Review
By Tracey Petherick
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Strong language, emotional themes in British lockdown drama.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Together
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
An unhappy couple are forced to re-evaluate their relationship in TOGETHER, as the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the U.K. and the country begins its first national lockdown. Anger, fear, and frustration abound as She (Sharon Horgan) and He (James McAvoy) navigate their new circumstances -- working from home, home schooling their son, and agonizing over how best to care for her elderly mother. Tensions run high, but there are also glimmers of hope for a happier future.
Is It Any Good?
The portrait of a seemingly doomed relationship under the shadow of COVID-19, this British drama tackles heavy-going themes with eloquence and empathy. Capturing the fear and confusion, and the daily adjustments we all had to make, Together squeezes out every significant moment of the pandemic into one expertly acted performance. And all while exploring the dynamic between a discontented couple forced together during lockdown.
Filmed in just 10 days, it has the feel of a stage play. Right from the off, the actors break the fourth wall, talking directly to the camera. This technique can sometimes seem awkward or unnatural, but not here. You almost immediately feel like a third person in the room with them, their friend, someone they're confiding in -- which makes the drama all the more intense. The spiteful arguments are punctuated by moments of tenderness, unity, even humor, and while the characters are certainly flawed they are also relatable. Amid the stark, at times devastating, realities of the effects of the pandemic, this is ultimately a story about the power of love, and about understanding that sometimes coming together is the only way to survive.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the way Together portrayed life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Did you find it relatable? Did it touch on any of your own experiences?
Discuss the strong language used. Was it a necessary part of the drama, giving more impact to the dialogue? Did it make the characters more, or perhaps less, realistic to you?
What do you think about the format of the film, with the actors giving monologues and "breaking the fourth wall" as they talked directly to the camera? Would the story have been told as effectively without these dramatic techniques? Have you seen these filming techniques used before?
Movie Details
- In theaters : August 27, 2021
- On DVD or streaming : September 14, 2021
- Cast : Sharon Horgan , James McAvoy
- Director : Stephen Daldry
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Bleecker Street Media
- Genre : Drama
- Run time : 91 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : language throughout
- Last updated : March 8, 2022
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