Pillion

(Spoiler warning--I'm going to run through the entire plot in this review)

Directed by Harry Lighton and based on the novel Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones, Pillion was my most-anticipated film of 2026. And I'm literally so happy that it lived up to--and exceeded--my expectations.

The film, which I would refer to as "the gay BDSM biker film with Alexander Skarsgard", is actually not about Skarsgard's character. It focuses on Colin (Harry Melling), a shy and very sweet man who lives with his parents who are very supportive of the fact that he's gay. They go so far as to set him up with "nice boys" and drive him to dates.

But it turns out that Colin doesn't want a nice boy.

Colin meets Ray (Skarsgard), an intimidatingly handsome biker, at a bar where Colin performs in a barbershop quartet. Ray gives Colin a note with a time and place and when Colin shows up, Ray ushers him to an alley and throat-fucks him, looking mildly annoyed at Colin's lack of ability in the deep-throating arena. When Colin shyly wonders if he might be able to "practice" the skill on Ray, Ray says that he's not around much and leaves. What a lovely first date!

Ray must see something in Colin because not long after, he tells him to pack a bag and picks him up at his parents house (it's a very hilarious scene) and whisks him away to a BDSM playground where...he tells Colin to cook him dinner and then tells Colin to sleep on the rug at the foot of the bed. No sex, no conversation, nothing. While this sort of thing would probably be a nightmare for most people, Colin seems pretty determined and before long, Colin's head is shaved, he's wearing a steel lock around his neck (while Ray wears the key), and he has joined Ray's motorcycle gang of kinksters as one of the subby boys who live to serve their dominant biker masters (fun fact, one of the other subs, Kevin, is played by Jake Shears of the band Scissor Sisters!)

Harry Melling, who plays Colin, makes this movie. He has these beautiful, expressive eyes and whenever Ray treats him roughly, you can see the wonder--the rapture--in his eyes. Melling is the line between Pillion being a joyful film of sexual exploration and Pillion being a sad movie about a man in a borderline abusive relationship. While we never learn Colin's age, it's safe to assume he's in his late 20s or early 30s, which adds some comfort for the audience because even though he's shy and inexperienced, he's not naive or easily manipulated--a fact I think is absolutely critical to this movie. And although Ray is cold, withholding, and intimidating, he isn't violent and he isn't even cruel. He's just offering Colin the only thing he can give, which is a loveless Dom/sub relationship. But it turns out that Colin wants love, in addition to orders, demands, and degradation. 

Folks who aren't in or adjacent to or at least knowledgeable about BDSM and the kink scene may truly struggle with Pillion because it's hard to understand why anyone would want the treatment Colin gets from Ray. Even people into BDSM might not want the treatment Colin gets, but at least we understand the pull of power dynamics. Colin writes a poem to Ray at one point:

Roses are red, violets are blue
Each day at your heel brings me closer to you
Your hand on the throttle, your leathers so tight
I crave your command from morning to night
Your grip is a promise, your gaze a hot flame
Next to you I am nothing, but I'm yours all the same
The pleasure you give, the pain that you bring
I'll take it all, Ray, for you are my king. 

Colin is a romantic. He wants intimacy and love just as much as he wants to be forced to knuckle under and follow instructions to the letter. And the wonderful thing is--he can have both. Just not with Ray, sadly.

Colin's mom, Peggy (played beautifully by Lesley Sharp), is dying of cancer. She's a wonderful mother, despite being a bit overbearing, and she insists that Ray come to Sunday dinner. She ends up challenging Ray, saying "I don't like the way you speak to my son" and Ray challenges her right back, saying "It's not for you to like". This was such an amazing scene because Ray isn't wrong. He points out that even if his and Colin's relationship makes Peggy uncomfortable, it's not for her to tell her son what should make him happy. However, Ray simply cannot read the room. He cannot adjust based on his audience. And he deserves to be pushed back on. Because all of this leads to Colin exerting his own needs more.

After Colin's mom passes away, he has a breakdown while cooking Ray dinner (yes, Ray makes him cook dinner on the day of his mother's funeral...we're starting to see the cracks show in the relationship at this point). In addition to giving in and ordering pizza, Ray invites him to sleep in his bed that night (some girls in my theatre started clapping at this). The problem is that when Colin asks if this can be a more regular thing and perhaps they can even "take a day off" every once in a while, Ray denies him. Colin responds by pushing him, harder and harder. 

After a, frankly, very frightening scene where Colin steals Ray's bike and rides it WITHOUT A HELMET (!!!), Ray relents and gives Colin a day off, where they just hang out like boyfriends, ending with a kiss in the park (Ray NEVER kisses Colin during the entirety of their relationship). Oh, but it's so cruel. We think the men are headed for a happy ending where they find a balance between domination and affection. But it's not to be...because Ray just can't be that guy. What happens is that Ray changes his number and moves without telling Colin--leaving Colin to knock at the door of Ray's empty apartment and talk to the bikers in Ray's gang, who also don't know where he went. 

For all his intimidating airs, Ray proves himself a coward. It's one thing to end a relationship. It's quite another to completely ghost your submissive lover. Ray may be dominant, but he's emotionally weak. But Colin proves himself to be brave at every single turn of the movie. This is a man who sings in public, advocates for what he wants, is not afraid to hop on the back of a motorcycle, and who loves deeply and without reservation. This is a man who is emotionally strong and able to grow.

So, does Colin give up his love of submission after being burned by Ray? ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT! The end of the film finds him filling out a dating/BDSM profile stating his limits ("I won't cut my hair for anyone") and his desires. He meets a handsome football player on a date, which begins with Colin realizing his date's shoe is untied and dropping to the ground to tie it for him. OH MY GOD I'M NOT CRYING, YOU'RE CRYING. 

Pillion enters that pantheon of BDSM movies that are actually good, alongside Secretary, Duke of Burgundy, and Sanctuary. These movies are "good" because they show that BDSM and kink aren't just about whips and chains, but about the mutually consensual give and take of power. And they also show the importance of negotiation. Duke of Burgundy is a particularly good example of this because in that movie, the sub is the one calling the shots and the Dom needs to advocate for her feelings too. 

AND THEY ALL HAVE HAPPY ENDINGS!!! A happy ending to a movie about kink does not involve people giving up their proclivities and becoming "normal", it involves them learning more about who they are and what they need. While we don't find out what happens with Colin and handsome football boy, we do know that Colin's gonna be ok. His relationship with Ray didn't end in trauma--it ended in growth. 

What an absolutely lovely film, and an important film at that. Representation is crucial, and BDSM isn't abuse, nor is it just some silly slap n' tickle. It's a sexual orientation, and one that is often willfully misunderstood, mocked, or met with ignorant "concern". The powers that be in the United States are pushing us towards sexual regression and repression--attacking queer and trans people at every turn. The irony is that BDSM is all about power too, but it's about power freely given. And that terrifies conservatives and fundie Christians because all they can understand is power taken by force. If power can be negotiated by two consenting adults, if women can have that power over men, if queer people can enjoy that power exchange...where does that leave the misogynist men in charge who want to control women completely, taking away their ability to consent and any freedom or pleasure they might experience? Where does that leave homophobic wretches who want to obliterate queerness from the earth? 

When you have a movie like Pillion, which is a shout of joy and freedom in the face ignorance and hate, you have something very special and very beautiful. 

Grade: A+ 

Wuthering Heights

Take with me, if you will, a trip back to 2023. It was the summer of "Barbenheimer". I was so excited for the release of Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer (which went on to win Best Picture) and Greta Gerwig's Barbie. I was also extremely excited for the long-awaited Martin Scorsese adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon, which was to be released later that summer. 

I saw all three movies and my response to each one was "that's it??" Now, don't get me wrong--these are all perfectly fine films (although none of them are my favorites from each respective director). But the build up, hype, and orgasmic response (particularly for Oppenheimer and Barbie) simply did not match my response to these films. 

Then, I randomly decided to see some movie called Saltburn. I was grinning like an idiot during this film. The AUDACITY. The PERVERSION. The EXCESS. Was the movie "as good as" the above three mentioned? Not according to traditional film criticism standards. Saltburn is, frankly, ridiculous. But it was FUN. You might think Barbie is fun, but it's not fun in the same way as watching Barry Keoghan drink Jacob Elordi's bathwater. 

Why am I talking about Saltburn? Well, the director, Emerald Fennell, has come out with a new ridiculous film: her interpretation of Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. I read Wuthering Heights as a senior in high school, which was 22 years ago. I remember almost nothing about it, except liking the character of Hareton--a character completely cut out of this film adaptation. From talking to people, it seems like most people who have read it don't like this book, particularly because it's about two very unlikeable people who torture each other and themselves until they die. 

Which is, uh, why Fennell's Wuthering Heights is kind of the perfect adaptation? The film is Wuthering Heights fanfic ok? And if you want to enjoy the movie, you have to go in knowing that. 

Fennell has faced criticism for white-washing Heathcliff. In the book, Heathcliff's race is ambiguous. He is described as having darker skin. But "darker" in 1847 could literally mean he was of Irish descent. He is described as "like a gipsy". Some scholars think that he could be Spanish, or Arab, or Indian. Fennell cast Jacob Elordi, who is Australian and Basque. Interestingly, she also cast Hong Chau, who is Vietnamese, as Nelly, Cathy Earnshaw's companion, and Shazad Latif, who is Pakistani, as Edgar Linton, Cathy's eventual husband. So...technically there was race-blind casting. However, I don't really think that's enough to make up for white-washing the main character of the story, especially given the fact that Heathcliff's race is one factor in why he and Cathy can never be together.

I agree that Fennell fucked up in this regard. I love Jacob Elordi, but it feels that his casting had more to do with the fact that he is a giant, hot man. There is a scene where he lifts Cathy using one hand by her corset strings and it was very much a panty-dropping moment. There is a satisfying primal instinct when you're attracted to men (as I am, for better or worse) when you see BIG TALL MAN pick up a woman (or another man, for that matter) as if they're nothing more than a ragdoll. It's clear that this is why Fennell cast Elordi. 

And that really is what is at the heart of Fennell's Wuthering Heights: BIG STRONG HOT MAN FUCKS PRETTY LADY. Me Tarzan, you Jane. This is a film for the nether regions, not the brain.

In addition to the 1980s bodice-ripper inspired "romance" (it's not a romance, it's a car wreck), Wuthering Heights is stupidly gorgeous. The set design is something else. The costumes are as historically inaccurate and silly as the ones on Bridgerton. Moreso, in fact, since Cathy wears gowns that appear to be made of see-through plastic material that certainly did not exist in the early 19th century. Anyone who is familiar with historical fashion knows that women did not wear corsets against their bare skin, and that corsets were not meant to be uncomfortable--yet, here is Cathy saying "tighter" and gritting her teeth as she is laced into her wedding corset (which rests against her bare skin) because she wants to punish herself for marrying Edgar Linton.

There are a few scenes where the cinematography almost looks...smokey? 

Look at this image:

And compare it to this image from Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon

To me, the set design is one of the main reasons to see Wuthering Heights--particularly on a big screen. It's gorgeous and extravagant, but in a ridiculous way. There's a visual gag during an otherwise serious, sad scene that had me laughing and saying "What??" in the theatre. 

I also have to call out the soundtrack, which is excellent. It features a mix of original scoring from Anthony Willis and lush and haunting songs from Charli XCX. 

Wuthering Heights falters in the final third, and especially the last 20 minutes or so. Cathy and Heathcliff's relationship hinges on unfulfilled desire and mutual anger and hatred. The novel carries these emotions out to the very end and even after Cathy and Heathcliff die. The characters never have sex (1847 novel, remember?) and only find peace after death, when they have their gravestones next to one another. 

In the movie, of course, they totally fuck. Heathcliff overhears Cathy saying that she has accepted Edgar Linton's marriage proposal and she can't marry Heathcliff because it would "degrade" her. He runs off into the night and returns 5 years late, mysteriously wealthy and well-groomed. He and Cathy have an affair, but when Cathy finally breaks it off (she's also pregnant with Edgar's child), Heathcliff takes revenge by marrying Isabella Linton (Alison Oliver, providing much-needed comedic relief in the role) and being cruel to her. Isabella is Edgar's ward, and like a younger sister to Cathy. The film tries to make Isabella and Heathcliff's relationship into a (somewhat?) consensual BDSM situation, designed to enrage Cathy...but the film doesn't really feel committed to this silliness. 

Anyway, it's too late. Cathy miscarries and becomes septic. She dies before Heathcliff can ride the 5 miles from Wuthering Heights to Thrushcross Grange to see her and he weeps over her dead body. Fin.

A random thing I found annoying about this film is how inaccurately time is portrayed. We find out that Cathy is pregnant before Heathcliff returns (so we all know it's Edgar's baby). Then, Cathy and Heathcliff go from hating each other, to a passionate affair, to Heathcliff marrying Isabella and writing Cathy every day, to Cathy dying...all without ever seeing a hint of a baby bump. So, this entire section of the film covers, what, 4 months? 5? But it's treated as if it's a long, drawn out affair. 

And then, yeah, Heathcliff gets word that Cathy is dying and can't make it in time to see her before she dies even though it's probably 20 minutes on horseback? And it's cross-cut with scenes of Cathy sick, but alive. Eh, it just felt dumb.

I'm coming to the end of all the words I can possibly spill about Emerald Fennell's Wuthering Heights. If you go into the film expecting a faithful adaptation, or a film with dignity and restraint, you will be sorely disappointed or even pissed off. If you go into it knowing that it is ridiculous and trashy, expecting to probably hate the characters, you will likely enjoy yourself and enjoy the film for what it is: Wuthering Heights fan fiction. 

Grade: B+

Send Help

Sam Raimi has such an interesting body of work. The guy was at the helm of one of the most celebrated horror franchises (Evil Dead) and also some of the most beloved Marvel films (the Tobey Maguire Spiderman films). Additionally, he's directed an excellent psychological thriller (A Simple Plan), a family-friendly sports film (For Love of the Game), and a Western (The Quick and the Dead). The man has range.

But when I hear the name "Sam Raimi", I think "gross-out horror". And after a break from horror for over a decade, he's back with Send Help, a survival/horror/comedy starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien. And yes, this movie has the Raimi Special: gross things going into people's mouths (if you've seen Drag Me to Hell, you know what I'm talking about).

McAdams plays the awkward, socially inept Linda Liddle, a corporate strategist at a large...business (what they do is unclear, since that's not the point of the movie). She has been promised a promotion to VP by the previous CEO who passed away, leaving the company to his son, Bradley (Dylan O'Brien). O'Brien plays a corporate asshole bro so beautifully. He immediately gives Linda's promotion to his frat brother and when Linda comes to his office upset, he tells her 1) that she don't got it and 2) she smells bad. However, he begrudgingly allows her to come on a corporate trip to Bangkok since the fact is the company can't survive without her ability to number-crunch.

Well, the plan crashes into the ocean on the way to Bangkok and Linda and Bradley are the only two survivors. The film establishes early on that Linda loves Survivor and even sent in an audition tape. She has read numerous books on bushcraft, knots, hunting, etc. We all know where this is going.

Send Help borrows (steals?) heavily from many, many other films: Cast Away, Triangle of Sadness, Swept Away...and even the show Yellowjackets (Misty Quigley and Linda Liddle are two of a kind--right down to the fact that they both have pet birds). The film is not original and hits many familiar beats. That said, it's still fun as hell. 

There's a lot of unrealistic stuff that happens, but perhaps the most unrealistic is how Bradley continues to be an arrogant asshole in the face of his own weakness. He ends up with a severe wound from the crash and Linda saves his life. What's the first thing he does when he comes to? Starts bossing Linda around, that's what. I can buy that Bradley is an entitled jerk, but it was hard to buy that he was that much of an idiot. Shouldn't a guy running a multi-million dollar corporation be better able to read the room and his own position within it?

In any case, he attempts to establish dominance and Linda just...leaves him lying there until he is nearly dying of thirst and sunburn. Then she returns and he begs for help. It's so nice when pretty men beg, isn't it? We get a decent amount of that in this film. 

But alas, Bradley must learn the lesson that help isn't coming and Linda is far and away his superior on this island over and over and over. But at the same time, the audience gets to see that Linda is not the benevolent beach goddess she presents herself as...she has a much darker side, and if Bradley gets on the wrong end of it, he's going to regret it.

Even though there weren't a ton of surprises in Send Help (although there was one that definitely got me), there is enough tension in the film about who is more dangerous--Linda or Bradley--that it kept me guessing and intrigued. We find out that Bradley and Linda are both very good liars and the power dynamics keep shifting. Even though Bradley begins their island adventure in a very weak position, as his injury heals and he learns survival tactics from Linda, he is able to take some power back...which Linda doesn't like very much.

Rachel McAdams is absolutely the star of the show here. She is hilarious and unhinged. I keep forgetting how much I love her as an actress until I see a movie like Red Eye or Game Night and remember that she is much, much more than Regina George (though she's excellent in that role as well). The woman, like Raimi, has incredible range. 

As for O'Brien...man, I am glad I saw him in Twinless before this movie because he is so sensitive and vulnerable in the former film. He's so good at playing an asshole in Send Help that if I had only seen him in this movie, I might have just written him off as only good at playing bullies. But having seen him in Twinless, I can say that he, too, has incredible range...and I'll be keeping an eye out for him in future films.

Overall, Send Help is a very fun and satisfying popcorn thriller. It's pretty gross as is, but it definitely could have been nastier. I think Raimi pulled some punches to make the film more palatable to the average movie-goer, but I would have liked the film to be darker, funnier, and more sadistic. But that's just me (I liked fucked up movies, if you didn't already know). 

Grade: B+