A24’s latest Is Alexander Skarsgård like you’ve never seen him before

Plot: A directionless man is swept off his feet when an enigmatic, impossibly handsome biker takes him on as his submissive.

Review: At what point in our lives do we develop kinks? What triggers them? When we’re young, the thought of exploring our bodies is taboo. Then, as our exposure to society broadens, and we come into contact with foreign stimuli that awaken an until-then dormant part of our psyches, new curiosities, preferences, and desires emerge. It could start with experimentation between two friends, an annual centerfold of your favorite X-Men, or later in life, when a partner expresses their wish for exploration. Regardless of the prompt, kinks are an unavoidable part of the human experience, even if some of us choose to repress our impulses for any multitude of reasons. While you’re chewing on that, let us talk about Harry Lighton’s Pillion, a darkly psychological “Dom-com” about BDSM culture, sexual awakenings, and reclaiming one’s power only after relinquishing it completely.

Lighton’s Pillion revolves around Colin (Harry Melling), a nebbish, a cappella-singing loner whose conventional approach to dating yields one unfufilling experience after the other. Colin is confused, lost, and self-flagellating until he meets Ray (Alexander Skarsgård), a Nordic biker whose stoic demeanor, mysteriousness, and god-forged body ensnare Colin in a not-so-tender trap of hypnotic lust. After a near-wordless exchange, Ray invites Colin to meet with him the following evening in a dark and private alley. With no preamble, Ray commands Colin to submit, welcoming Colin into a pattern of sexual servitude, probing, and unexpected emotional fulfillment.

When Colin arrives at Ray’s apartment, Ray inquires about Colin’s sleeping habits, orders him to cook dinner, and gives Colin’s seat to his Rottweiler, Rosie, quickly establishing a power dynamic in which Ray is the dominant force, and Colin is the submissive. The vibe is not what Colin expected, but he likes it. He likes it a lot. Could get used to it. Wants to get used to it. Wants to be of service. Adores the thought of being Ray’s new pet. We’ve seen this dynamic before in media properties like Secretary, 50 Shades of Grey, and Stjepan Šejić’s must-read adult comic series Sunstone. Still, Pillion hits different, where Lighton’s moody direction and arresting performances by Meller and Skarsgård elevate the story to awe-inspiring heights.

I can’t imagine anyone else playing Ray but Skarsgård. Ray is a man of few words, but he’s also complex, authoritative, and repressed. Try as he might to keep Colin under his black leather biker boot, his control over his sweet British boy begins to slip as their arrangement evolves. A catalyst for this is Colin’s mother, Peggy, played brilliantly by Lesley Sharp. Peggy is dying, and despite her wish to see Colin partnered with a nice man before she passes away, she’s vehemently against Colin’s relationship with Ray. She doesn’t understand Ray and Colin’s dynamic, and instead of asking whether Colin is happy, she attacks his new lifestyle, driving a wedge between them. The scene where Peggy and Ray come to verbal blows over a home-cooked meal is one of the film’s most potent exchanges, setting Ray and Colin up for unforeseen challenges to their heated appetites.

Meanwhile, Colin’s dad, Pete (Douglas Hodge), is more intuitive. He believes he understands the nature of Colin and Ray’s arrangement, and he’s content to let it ride. Colin has never really left the nest, and it’s time for him to have an adventure or an escapade. Take your pick. You get the sense that Pete would step in if he thought Ray would hurt Colin, but Colin appears happy, and Pete has his wife to consume more of his energy and thoughts. Hodge plays Pete like an emotional cheerleader, shaking his proverbial pom-poms for the fact that his son is finally taking a risk with his heart.

Finally, there’s Harry Melling. Freakin’ Dudley Dursley from the Harry Potter franchise, all grown up and acting his pants off. Sometimes literally. I’ve seen Melling in a handful of other film projects, like The Old Guard and The Queen’s Gambit, but I’ve never seen him in a role that’s so raw, affecting, and tragic. At the film’s start, Colin has no idea what he wants. He doesn’t even know that his kink is becoming someone’s sub. Through his arrangement with Ray, something awakens within him. He aims to please. He’s good at it. He’s willing to sleep on the floor, French kiss footwear, and wrestle with his pale, bare ass pointed toward the sky. He’s happy, but could be happier.

Peppered with sardonic humor, Pillion is explicit and celebrates a form of relationships rarely seen in film or executed with this level of artistry and charm. Lighton’s script paints the BDSM community with bright colors. It’s not all leather chaps and Neoprene Puppy Hoods, though there’s some of that too. The biker gang Ray belongs to isn’t scary. They welcome Colin with open arms after Ray takes a shine to him, and they’ve given Colin a sense of community, a found family.

While depicting several acts of BDSM throughout the film, Pillion does not shy away from the indulgence and pleasure of such acts. Still, try as they may to adhere to their original arrangement, love begins to blossom, and that’s when things take a turn.

If there’s one thing Pillion is missing, it’s attention to the act of aftercare, which involves providing emotional, physical, and psychological support after an intense exchange of BDSM energies. However, I think this omission is deliberate. There’s a degree of toxicity to Ray and Colin’s relationship, and with Ray not providing aftercare, Colin could do better. I keep thinking about a line from the film where Ray asks Colin if he’s happy, and Colin says, “Yes, Ray, I’m happy. I’m so happy. I could just… be happier.” This bit of dialogue hit me like a ton of bricks, and my emotional gears shifted into reverse.

Pillion won’t be for everyone, given the sensitive subject matter and scenes of explicit sex, but as far as feature directorial debuts go, it’s a brilliant one. Lighton brings an intense calm to Pillion like water heating atop a hot stove, the scalding liquid threatening to boil over. Skarsgård and Melling are fearless, and I can’t think of the story ending any other way. If you’re willing to embrace Pillion for what it is, a fascinating depiction of power differentials in an unconventional relationship, you’ll be rewarded with one of the most unique dramas this year.

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