Can a guy go one single day without seeing a new Skarsgård movie?! Well, yes, of course he can, he does it most days. My point, though, is that this family sure does crank out a lot of movies, many of which are quite good. In the most recent example of “a Skarsgård released a movie,” Alexander Skarsgård stars in Pillion, which will finally open in the U.S. later this month. I can’t say I’m entirely familiar with motorcycle culture or with gay BDSM culture, but guess what? You don’t even have to be to enjoy this movie! You can be a boring dork like me and still enjoy a quite funny, quite moving, and quite uncomfortable portrayal of unconventional intimacy.

Issuing parking tickets by day and singing in a barbershop quartet by night, Colin (Henry Melling) is open to love, but his timid demeanor gets in the way of connecting with potential suitors. A chance glimpse of Ray (Skarsgård) with his motorcycle friends at a bar leads to an unexpected rendezvous, made all the more unexpected due to Ray’s assertive and commanding attitude. What starts as an unlikely encounter leads to a more frequent arrangement, though one that Colin isn’t quite familiar with: Ray commands Colin to cook and clean for him, and if Colin is subservient enough, he gets to enjoy sexual encounters with Ray. The longer this relationship lasts, the more Colin grows to understand himself, as he gets deeper into the BDSM community of gay bikers.

Pillion marks Harry Lighton’s feature writing/directing debut and, boy, what a debut! Pearl-clutching audiences might dismiss a movie about “gay BDSM bikers,” as there’s an inherent sexuality that comes along with such a description. While there’s plenty of sex in the movie, some of which is quite explicit, to reduce the entire movie to provocative phrases is a complete disservice to the experience. Thanks to Lighton’s script and mastery of the film’s tone, the audience is thrust (pun intended) into this community right along with Colin –⁠ he feels just as surprised by what’s being asked of him as audiences are, and the further we get into the movie, the more we can accept unconventional dynamics we might not be accustomed to seeing on film.

While Lighton does normalize the idea of sleeping at the foot of someone’s bed or wearing a locked chain around your neck with only your dom having the key, he’s also not trying to make an educational film that glamorizes this culture. Listen –⁠ every type of relationship and every dynamic has its quirks that not everyone is comfortable with as an outside observer. For some, it might be weird for a straight couple to sit on the same side of the table when they go out to a restaurant, and for others, it might be weird for one partner to ask another to lick their boots. All relationships are weird! Colin’s family and Colin himself question the nature of this relationship, and it’s up to him whether he wants to stick to these well-defined rules and restraints or demand something else as their connection evolves.

There’s an inherent absurdity (and nastiness) to sex, and while we’ve been accustomed to romantic encounters in bedrooms with soft lighting and glistening sweat, Pillion embraces that inherent absurdity, yet manages to make it still quite erotic. Lighton depicts the evolution of these sexual encounters similarly to how he depicts the relationship itself: what appears shocking at first is quickly normalized, allowing the characters to push their boundaries and bring the audience along for the ride.

Lighton’s script and tonal mastery aren’t the only things that make Pillion work, though, as the effectiveness of the on-screen relationship is entirely a credit to Melling and Skarsgård’s performances. Given that Skarsgård is a 6’4″ hunk, who’s gotten to be a hunk on screen a number of times, he naturally falls into this role. Without even uttering a word, Ray is a commanding, stoic presence, with Skarsgård effortlessly conveying that persona. Melling, meanwhile, is timid without being weak, introverted without being embarrassing, and it’s his performance that really makes the whole dynamic work. Knowing what we know by the end of the movie, reflecting on how Colin had the support of his family to first meet Ray, while being encouraged to take their dachshund along with him in case Ray is a weirdo, highlights just how far Colin’s journey takes him throughout the movie’s run time.

The ultimate theme of Pillion is self-discovery. It’s about learning and growing with everything that happens to your in life, whether those are inspired by interpersonal connections or relationships or family or friends or literally anything at all. Every relationship is weird, people do weird things to each other, and weird things are normalized –⁠ what really matters is whether we change ourselves to suit these situations or we let these situations change us and change what our real desires are. Pillion manages to capture the joy and excitement and awkwardness of connecting with another person, though also highlights the satisfaction of connecting with yourself.

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