Movie Review: Pillion

While traditional relationships work perfectly well for many people, there will always be those for whom the standard template simply doesn’t fit. The reasons for that disconnect are countless, but whatever they may be, we all deserve the chance to find a situation that works best for us as long as it doesn’t interfere with anyone else. Ray (Alexander Skarsgård) is one such person, a man for whom a standard, monogamous relationship is very much not in the cards. It is possibly due to a tragedy in his past, though Harry Lighton’s Pillion, based on Adam Mars-Jones’ book Box Hill, keeps the specifics deliberately opaque.

One cold night he wanders into a British pub and is spotted by Colin (Harry Melling), who is there on a blind date arranged by his mother Peggy (Lesley Sharp). Said date doesn’t appear to be going well, with both men expressing more interest in Ray than each other, but at the end of the evening Colin is surprised to receive a note from Ray telling him to meet on Christmas night. Despite the unusual timing, he meets the man who promptly pulls him into a degrading encounter in a dirty alley before departing with no promise of further interaction. Suffering from such low self-esteem as to be happy with any contact at all, Colin is nevertheless elated.

Months later, Ray reappears, and the pair begin a dom/sub dynamic that would probably not work for most of us, but which seems to provide both men with precisely what they need. Yet as their relationship brings Colin more and more out of his shell and others offer up their unsolicited opinions of it, he finds himself yearning for at least some more traditional forms of affection, possibly at the expense of the fragile equilibrium he’s found.

Pillion seems like it genuinely understands BDSM relationships in a way that 2024’s Babygirl only wishes it could. Of course, not everyone falls into one for the same reasons as these two, but it’s easy to see how it could appeal to them. That Skarsgård and Melling totally commit to their scenes together of course helps, making the emotional logic of the relationship feel lived‑in rather than sensationalized.

This isn’t just late-night-Cinemax-movie-style titillation, though there is plenty of that. Both actors take us through their characters’ evolutions with nuance. Melling especially is allowed to showcase his skills, transforming from timid and wounded to someone tentatively discovering his own agency. Beautifully shot by Nick Morris and well-scored by Oliver Coates, this is as sensorially rich as it is emotionally resonant.

Alternately funny, melancholy, erotic, and tender, it’s an unusual but surprisingly endearing story of personal growth. So consistently engaging and well-assembled one struggles to believe this is Lighton’s first time directing a feature film, it marks the arrival of a striking new talent. Maybe a little too ambiguous for its own good, but Pillion remains one of the most memorable films of the past year. ★★★★½