Let your soul be whipped into shape. New romance and the film Pillion
Kapitál
How is the perception of romance changing in art? A new film with a BDSM and love theme reveals boundaries, trust, and surrender, raising questions about contemporary ideas of relationships, violence, and romance in the modern world. What will this bold debut reveal?
Romantic stories in art are changing just like society's approach to them. Concepts like chickflick or chicklit are now considered derogatory, guilty pleasure is just pleasure. Romance worldwide ranks among the most profitable book genres, the series Heated Rivalry has broken networks and hearts, audio erotica corrects what traditional porn has spoiled. Film production is also jumping on the trend, although it often still adheres to traditions: since movies are expensive, they need to attract as many viewers as possible, and the curve doesn't bend – the middle is broad.
And then the most expressive film about love will be gay BDSM coming of age of a study exploring personal boundaries, which cost a million dollars to produce.
The film Pillion (2025) is an adaptation of the novella Box Hill (2020), in which British writer Adam Mars-Jones describes the life of 18-year-old Colin. And although in the film he is played by 37-year-old Harry Melling, you believe in youth and inexperience. Colin experiences a deep relationship with motorcyclist Ray, based on BDSM principles of dominance and submission. However, it remains a sensitive romantic melodrama – just with props and settings that can push the audience to the edge of their possibilities. As someone who has seen in the cinema with others Deep Throat (1972), I can say that after breathing through Colin's and Ray's adventure in the dark alley, I obediently accepted everything and even asked for more.
More than daring shots – shortened from the original cut to omit the most explicit moments – what shocks about the film is also the fact that it is a debut. Director Harry Lighton carefully controls every element and does not slip into clichés or pathos – for example, in poetic scenes of Colin's growing love for Ray or in the essential dialogue about what is most important in a relationship. Gentle, situational, but also cynical humor, depiction of family life, routines, and excitement – all have their place, weight, expressive power, and cinematic precision.
The BDSM community rightly fears that an insensitive audience after watching the film might only deepen prejudices. However, you don't need a film school degree to understand that Colin's and Ray's relationship is skewed and that non-consensual violence has no place in any relationship. I don't want to reveal too much – the element of surprise plays a crucial role in the film – but Ray is not okay, and at the end, he should be much more pitied than Colin, who appears pitiable only on the surface. Depth is not for the superficial, BDSM is for everyone.
Steven Spielberg stated in 2007 that the low-budget musical Once inspired him for the entire following year. The intimacy of Pillion could have a similar impact. And there's even a bit of singing here, which for many viewers might be more frightening than explicit sex scenes. Harry Lighton brings such pure romance, or relationship functionality, that recent Wuthering Heights (2026) can only dream of wet dreams.
Romantic films have always reflected the culture of their time. Millions of women identified with the book and later film Bridget Jones because Helen Fielding described life as it was during patriarchy (which hasn't gone anywhere), at the turn of the millennium, with prevailing harsh diet culture (which has returned) and with tolerating or even preferring that your boss secretly grabs your butt. As a popular genre, romcoms also influence what we expect from relationships. Despite still working with fantasy and idealization, they increasingly reflect fatigue from dating apps, uncertainty, violence, and inequality.
Is Pillion a romantic film despite its BDSM theme? Quite the opposite! It tells of surrender, trust, and the desire to be seen with such tenderness that the roughness of the practices only emphasizes it. Go to the cinema, sit comfortably, and let your soul be gently caressed by a whip.
The author is a writer and publicist
Text is part of the PERSPECTIVES project – a new brand for independent, constructive, and multiperspective journalism. The project is funded by the European Union. The expressed opinions and positions are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). The European Union or EACEA do not assume any responsibility for them.