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| Image Courtesy A24 |
Viewers' tolerance of taboo material or subcultures will always skew their perceptions of a film's quality. When a person squirms in their seat, looks away, or gets angry over what they see on the screen, it’s harder to pick up on a film’s themes or goals.
Pillion (2025) is a romantic and very funny journey of self-discovery that takes place within a queer BDSM community of bikers in England. Young Collin (Harry Melling in not the first of the Harry Potter-famed actors taking on more mature roles) first meets Ray (Alexander Skarsgård) at his local pub after the timid man sings in a barbershop quartet with his dad, brother, and cousin. Collin all but ignores a guy having a drink with him because the group of bikers, including Ray, has taken over a corner of the pub.
After Ray and Collin end up at the bar at the same time, Ray gives Collin a test to see if the timid man goes along with a domination/submissive scenario. After Collin passes, Ray writes on a Christmas card the time and location to meet on Christmas Day. And thus begins a classic story of an outsider discovering a community that provides him with fulfillment, enjoyment, and a sense of purpose. Collin’s joy and fulfillment are often shown in dreamy scenes of him riding on the back (aka riding pillion) of Ray’s motorcycle, with his arms around his dom.
Collin’s new community is a group of motorcycle riders who all take a submissive (sub), a man who takes orders, fulfills sexual desires, and could be described as a slave for the dominant (dom). This divisive subculture could overshadow the romantic elements of the story, leaving the uninitiated viewer frustrated or disgusted at the apparent inequality.
A scene in the middle best describes the unapologetic tone of the film. Ray is invited, against his wishes, to dinner with Collin’s family. After some initial conversation, Collin’s mom, Peggy (Lesley Sharp), tells Ray, “I don’t like the way you talk to my son.”
Ray responds calmly with, “That’s okay. It’s not for you to like.”
The film approaches the BDSM community in the same way. First-time director Harry Lighton almost creates a documentary feel to much of the dom/sub elements that avoids sensationalizing. How titillating the graphic sex and nudity is depends on how tolerant the viewer is of the bootlicking and manual labor the subs perform.
This community can be easily misunderstood because of the long-time fear and scapegoating of this dynamic. The sub can be stereotyped as effeminate or weak and as being coerced into the relationship by the dom. Doms can be seen as chauvinistic and cruel. The consensual contract between the two people can be overlooked, as can the couple’s ability to renegotiate that contract.
Viewers made uncomfortable by Ray dominating Collin throughout the film get a reprieve during a third-act shift, which can become a breath of fresh air. This shift works incredibly to humanize both Ray and Collin and to illustrate the consensual nature of the contract between a dom and sub. It also works to complicate that contract while providing a glimpse into the psychology behind this type of arrangement.
Pillion doesn’t quite fit into the romantic comedy genre, though it has elements of both. It doesn’t quite fit into exploitation cinema, though it has strong sexual content and domineering situations. It’s a divisive mix of a film that can be a moving and sweet tale for those who aren’t turned off by the dom/sub dynamic.
- Eric Beach