After having its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, Nikole Beckwith’s non-typical love story, “Together Together,” hits our screens. While it delivers charm and sweetness by the boatload, it is lacking and a tad forgettable.
The rom-com subgenre has a lot of tropes countless films have used over and over. At times, it gets very tiresome, but there are few exceptions. “Together Together” has all the trademarks that consist of a romantic comedy, but it technically is not one. It focuses more on a platonic relationship, rather than one focused on romance and attraction. A film like this rarely gets the greenlight because most of them follow a formula; and honestly, it was quite refreshing despite it having some faults.
A 26-year-old woman named Anna (Patti Harrison) becomes a surrogate to a middle-aged app designer named Matt (Ed Helms). She is on it, only because it brings her good money to complete her college education and some good karma. Matt, however, is so enthusiastic about becoming a parent that he places himself into her life and lets her into his own. While initially annoyed about it, Anna warms up to him as time passes. The pair forge an improbable relationship in which they are gently open to each other and dive into their experiences in life.
The film does not explain how Anna and Matt got into each other’s lives. Instead, it only shows a small segment of their interview and what is about to unravel between them. It is divided by trimesters, and within each trimester their relationship grows stronger. Patti Harrison and Ed Helms have great onscreen chemistry, delivering subtle yet charming performances. While Helms delivers his nerdy yet sweet and charismatic charisma onto his character, Harrison’s is a bit more grounded.
A scene from “Together Together.” Photo: Bleecker Street, 2021.
The best moments of “Together Together” are its most simple ones. These involve moments where Matt and Anna have conversations about their past lives, frustrations, and a deep dive into the melancholy that their situation brings upon them. Lines like “It’s weird to be perceived as hopeless; at this moment I am incredibly hopeful” help reach a more humanistic ground. One of the film’s most touching lines is: “When I hang out with my settled friends, I feel sad for what I want and don’t have. And when I hang out with my single friends, I feel sad for what I have and don’t want”.
Those moments, beautifully written, make the audiences feel an emotional attachment. But most often, it goes all out on quirks instead of giving us a more realistic tone. A high percentage of the jokes in the film feel quite forced and a bit unfunny. Sure, there are some laughs, but attempts at humor in serious moments hurt the film more than it knows. The film has Julio Torres, who plays Jules, to add a more comedic factor in the film. But the jokes the filmmakers gave him felt poorly delivered and fell flat.
In another universe, there is a version of “Together Together” that is a well-developed drama; one wherein two strangers bond over their differences, loneliness, and family issues. That would have been a better film. The film ends suddenly, which could have benefited from more exposition toward what happened next. As said before, it is refreshing that there is a film that does not focus on romance and makes the main characters friends instead of partners. Nevertheless, it could have used less comedy and quirkiness to make the film more effective.
*”Together Together” is available to rent or buy on most streaming platforms.
