What does the Bell Signify at the End of Together?

Directed by Michael Shanks, ‘Together’ follows the story of Millie and Tim, who are going through a tough time in their relationship. They have been together for ten years, but the cracks are starting to show, particularly with Tim’s increasing dependency on Millie. When she gets a new job opportunity, they relocate to a small town, where strange things start to happen after they have a weird encounter during a hike. The film ends on a very shocking, though not entirely unexpected, note for the characters. However, there is one detail that recurs throughout the movie and then reappears at the end, adding more depth to the film’s conclusion. SPOILERS AHEAD.

The Bells Represent the Cult of the Fallen Church

The last scene of ‘Together’ has Millie’s parents walking up their driveway, where the couple’s blood still adorns the path. They move past it and go to the door. However, instead of ringing a doorbell, they ring an actual bell to alert the house’s owner of their presence. The presence of this bell on Millie and Tim’s door is interesting because the same bell had been appearing throughout the movie. The first time it’s properly noticed is when the cave comes into the picture. A giant bell hangs at the mouth of the hole that opens into the cave below. Later, when Millie and Tim go into the woods for a hike, Tim notices the bells leading the way. He believes that these are markings for a path, and in a way, he is right. Someone has placed the bells there to guide lost hikers, but that doesn’t mean it’s the right path.

The next time we see the bell is when Millie ends up at their neighbor Jamie’s door. This suggests that Jamie not only knows exactly what’s going on with Millie and Tim, but he might also be the instigator who pushed him towards it. It isn’t until the end that Millie discovers that the bell is the symbol of the people who were part of a cult that believed that humans were supposed to have four legs and four hands, and they were separated because the gods feared this powerful version of humans. The church of this cult existed in the woods, where they conducted ceremonies for two people in love to literally merge and become one. These ceremonies were performed like weddings, and the couple would drink from a magic fountain, whose water would kickstart the process of merging.

The bell’s presence outside Jamie’s door is the first sign of his being a part of the cult. At first, he appears to be a friendly colleague who might be attracted to Millie. However, it later turns out that he doesn’t have any interest in Millie or anyone else because he is already with his soulmate. They merged together during a ceremony in the church, the video of which Millie later discovers in Jamie’s house. An important point raised here is that for the merging to finish properly, the participants must give in to the process. They must accept that they are now one and the same person and let the merging take over. The more they resist it, the worse it will get, and since there is no way to stop the merging, it’s better not to fight it. At the end of the movie, the bell outside Millie and Tim’s house represents this submission.

The Bell Adds a More Sinister Meaning to the Ending

After fighting the urge to merge, Millie and Tim finally give in to it and become one person, named Tillie. One could say that it was a decision made to save Millie from bleeding out and dying, but it only goes to show how deeply rooted their, especially Tim’s, codependency was. Now that they have survived it, one would think that they would want to run away from the town that changed them forever. But that’s not the case. By merging, they haven’t just accepted each other into their bodies; they have also become a part of the greater whole of the cult. This means that running away isn’t exactly an option for them because their new role comes with certain responsibilities.

One of the things about being in a cult is that you have to continue the pyramid scheme of bringing more people in. Jamie did that when he pushed Millie and Tim into a direction that ended with their merging. He encouraged them, particularly Millie, throughout the process. He may even have triggered it for Millie when he offered her water in his home. He deliberately puts on the video of his wedding because he wants her to understand that what’s happening to her is a gift, not something to be afraid of. Thus, when Millie and Tim turn into Tillie, the bell outside their door is them becoming card-carrying members of the cult of merging, which means that now it’s their turn to bring in new members. And lo and behold, they have a couple knocking on their door.

The arrival of Millie’s parents was anticipated. She’d told Tim about it the day before, when he was still trying to convince her that something horrific is happening to them. She went as far as to tell him not to be there when her parents arrive, and with the merging, it kinda turns out the way she wanted it. With that in mind, one cannot say that Millie, or rather Tillie, planned this. However, having so recently merged, the parents on their doorstep are an opportunity to spread the good word of merging. Even if the parents don’t immidiately accept it, all Tillie has to do is pour some magic water for them, and their bodies will do the rest. Thus, the bell shows that the merging hasn’t just happened for them on a personal level. It also means that they have accept their merging into the cult, and that makes them scarier than they were before.

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