Directed by Harry Lighton | Written by Lighton, based on the book Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones | 106 min | ▲▲▲▲

Colin (Harry Melling) is a quiet, queer young man who lives with his parents, Douglas and Peggy (Douglas Hodge and Lesley Sharp) in suburban Bromley, South London, and sings with Douglas in a barbershop quartet. Colin’s parents are supportive of their boy’s lifestyle, even going so far as to set him up with young men of their acquaintance, but nothing seems to work out for Colin… until one day at the pub he meets Ray (Alexander Skarsgaard). Ray is a taciturn, super-hot gay biker, aloof in the extreme. He seems to recognize right away that Colin appreciates being given orders, which leads immediately to what seems to this reviewer to be a fairly extreme BDSM relationship. Ray tells Colin what to do, from cooking to sleeping at the foot of his bed to when they will and won’t have sex, and Colin is well pleased.

Here we’ve got the astonishingly charismatic Skarsgaard and the meek and mild Melling, both perfectly cast and entirely game, committing to these roles where they’ve really got to bring it, both emotionally and physically. The chains, the rough sex, Skarsgaard’s (presumably ersatz) pierced cock, we get the full package.

And while the sex is surprisingly explicit, this story is somehow both sweet and funny. Some of the best scenes are when Ray invites Colin to join him with his gang of gay bikers (including the acting debut of The Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears) on their rides through the English countryside. In the evenings there’s sex around the campfire, and the specifics of the dynamic between Ray and Colin are clear, even how they distinguish themselves from the other sub-dom relationships in the group. The film teases us with what’s going on with the implacable Ray before finally coming out with Colin’s emotional maturity, turning the tables and revealing how they really fit together — and whether their relationship is sustainable once Colin comes to understand what he really needs.

There’s an element of genuine wish-fulfillment to this, which isn’t a criticism, just a recognition that most of us would love someone to ride up and know, instinctively, what makes us happy and just give it to us without ever needing a conversation about the specifics. There’s no talk of consent, no awkward discussion of boundaries — which makes PiIlion that much more transgressive and exciting.