freakboy on film: PILLION (2025)

My sister noticed this film listed on HBO and read the synopsis to me.  Much like FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET on TCM back in 2020, I knew I had to watch PILLION!  It didn’t hurt that one of its stars is Alexander Skarsgård, and he might be at his sexiest here. 

Colin is a young Englishman who lives with his father and cancer-ridden mother.  On a blind date at a pub set up by his mother, Colin spots a tall drink of biker leather named Ray.  After paying for Ray’s snacks while getting another round for his blind date, Colin suddenly has a date for Christmas Day, or night, rather.  This first festive back-alley holiday date includes Colin being ordered to literally lick one of Ray’s boots and then to stay on his knees to satisfy the biker’s Christmas wish.  Who says romance is dead? 

This first date wakes up a submissive kink in Colin and he eventually begins living with Ray.  This arrangement includes Colin fixing all the meals, sleeping on a rug on the floor at the end of Ray’s bed, having his head shaved and being one of the naked offerings at a biker potluck picnic.  One reward for behaving like a good little submissive is a wrestling sex session, which is more about Ray’s physical pleasure than Colin’s.  Is it now obvious why I had to watch this sometimes twisted film?

After a personal tragedy, Colin begins wanting an emotional connection.  In an act of compassion or sympathy, Ray allows Colin to share his bed.  This seeming softness is short-lived and soon it’s back to the rug.  Disappointed, Colin works up the nerve to request a day off where they act like two people in an equal, loving relationship, but will Ray give-in or will Colin have to remain a 24/7 submissive?  

Harry Melling,  grandson of the 2nd Doctor Who Patrick Troughton, brings a sympathetic innocence to Colin even as he engages in very non-innocent activities.  Alexander Skarsgård, brother of Pennywise Bill Skarsgård, infuses Ray with intense sexual magnetism and a believable demanding attitude.  The rest of the cast is great, but top honors must go to Lesley Sharp as Colin’s mother Peggy.  She is full on believable as a loving parent who is also understandably concerned about her son’s new relationship, even as she is dying.  The scene where Ray joins Colin’s parents for a meal is priceless in its mixture of humor and pain.  

Writer/directer Harry Lighton balances both pain and humor with brilliant results.  There were times I found myself chuckling, but I wasn’t sure it was supposed to be funny.  Then again, how could the wrestling scene not be funny with Tiffany’s cover of “I Think We’re Alone Now” playing front and center?   I became so curious if the source material for PILLION, the book “Box Hill: A Story of Low Self-Esteem” by Adam Mars-Jones, is also equal parts humorous and painful that I ordered a copy.  As if I don’t have enough to read! 

I confess that I don’t fully understand this type of arrangement.  I mean, I can wrap my head around paying someone for a weekend of being a dom or a sub, but a full-time relationship boggles my mind a bit.  However, if the participants are willing adults who completely understand what is expected, then embrace your kink and go for it. 

In conclusion… 

I enjoyed PILLION because the characters felt realistically written and performed.  Plus, it is truly a unique kind of love story.  So, if you’re looking for a different way to celebrate 🏳️‍🌈Pride Month🏳️‍⚧️, grab a lock or a key and get kinky with PILLION! 

SIDE NOTE: 
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of pillion is “a motorcycle or bicycle saddle for a passenger.”

Freak Out, 
JLH 

P.S. The character of Ray gave off a vibe that reminded me of the Wendy’s man I blogged about earlier this year.  Click the pic for more about him…👇

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Celebrate 🏳️‍🌈Pride Month🏳️‍⚧️ with my queer books available in various formats from Amazon…
📚 

freakboy on film: THE GHASTLY ONES / SEEDS OF SIN (an Andy Milligan double feature)

In the last few months of 2020, I was introduced to writer/director Andy Milligan by way of FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET.  I enjoyed this early 1970's look at New York City hustlers so much that I purchased a DVD from Greece via eBay.  My 2021 was rang in with popcorn, chocolate, a sleeping cat on my lap and the X-rated cut of FLESHPOT glowing from the TV.  It was the most bizarre and fascinating New Year's Eve I've ever experienced.

In March, TCM UNDERGROUND aired the R-rated cut of FLESHPOT again, along with another Andy Milligan film called GURU THE MAD MONK.  It's a crazy film about a demented monk, a hunchback and a vampire living together in a monastery.  Think THREE'S COMPANY with a  body count, well...sort of.  GURU compelled me to look up other Andy Milligan classics on IMDb and SEEDS OF SIN caught my eye.  Unfortunately, this particular film wasn't streaming anywhere and I could only find a clip on You Tube.  The one clip convinced me to order a double feature DVD.  

Let's start with...

THE GHASTLY ONES (1968) 

screenplay by Hal Sherwood & Andy Milligan / directed by Andy Milligan 

Three sisters, and their respective husbands, are called to their ancestral home for the reading of their father's will.  Once there, the drinks start flowing and the bodies begin piling up.  Is the killer one of the sisters, one of the husbands or one of the three unsettling servants?  I thought I had it figured out, but I was wrong.

Overall, I was entertained by THE GHASTLY ONES, except for gruesome scenes involving a real rabbit.  My only other complaint is I wish the plot would have focused a bit more on the characters.  Certain emotional elements with the sisters and the husbands are introduced, but not fully explored.  Still, if you are in the mood for low-budget crazy horror, you could do worse than THE GHASTLY ONES! 

Now to the reason we are here...

SEEDS OF SIN (1968) 

screenplay by John Borske & Andy Milligan / directed by Andy Milligan 

"Well, you've ruined my life and now I've just ruined your dinner!" - the mother to her children 

Welcome to a house of family dysfunction, secrets and sin!  A sickly, cantankerous matriarch lives with her one-eyed male caretaker, daughter Carol and two conniving servants.  The matriarch has other grown children but wants nothing to do with them.  Carol, going against her mother's wishes, invites the estranged family home for Christmas.  Well, holiday cheer quickly turns to murderous fear as family members get bumped off one by one by someone in the house.  Now do you understand why this one caught my eye? 

What the hell did I just watch? was what I thought at the end of the film.  Don't get me wrong, I loved the crazy dialogue and shocking character revelations, but the film was edited in a seriously confusing way.  Some of the other grown children are not really properly introduced, so good luck keeping track of who is who.  I even thought one character was killed and came back to life, but I had misidentified two similar looking characters.  To top off the confusion, the deleted scenes in the DVD bonus features shows us the death of a character who is barely in the actual film.  Sadly, there is a reason for the horrible editing.

According to the back of the DVD box, producers and distributers wanted more sex in the film.  How much more?  Well, SEEDS OF SIN begins with an orgy that does NOT appear to involve any character from the film.  Same goes for some of the other endless sex scenes scattered throughout. (Who the hell is getting it on now?).  However, there are a few actual plot-related sex scenes, but even they go on far too long.  The only interesting thing in these soft-core moments is the harsh lighting often gives the men a ghostly glow, especially their posteriors.  (Damn, that's a seriously white ass!) 

 

Overall, I really enjoyed this film, I think.  SEEDS OF SIN was everything I expected in the family dysfunction angle, but nothing like I expected in just about every other angle.  So, if you are in the mood for a choppy, disturbing, occasionally hard to follow nudie-horror film, SEEDS OF SIN might float your filmic boat!  Oh, when I watch it again, and I will, there will be a lot of fast-forwarding during the sex scenes, which should up the entertainment factor. 

In conclusion, I am beginning to think FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET is Andy Milligan's masterpiece, though SEEDS OF SIN could've came close if important scenes had not been replaced by extra sex.  However, I've barely scratched the surface.  Thanks to an extremely intriguing trailer in the DVD bonus features, the late Andy Milligan isn't done with me yet. 

Thank you for reading or listening to my half-blind words.

Freak Out, 

JLH 

P.S.  A recently reviewed film I stumbled upon while searching for Andy Milligan films...

http://freakboyzone.blogspot.com/2021/03/freakboy-on-film-shriek-of-mutilated.html 

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New Month!

New Eye!

New Interview! 

https://thejlhcollective.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-collective-eye-april-2021.html 

freakboy on film: FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET (1973)

 (written & directed by Andy Milligan)

I could slip on my Mad Scientist Glasses and take photos of the TV screen or just look up a program schedule online, but my sister was already checking listings on the onscreen cable guide last Friday.  So, I inquired as to what was airing on Turner Classic Movies overnight.  When my sister mentioned FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET, I asked in a most incredulously curious tone, "What is that about?"  When she uttered the words, transvestite roommate, I knew for certain I'd be waking up in the middle of the night to catch this TCM Underground flick. 

FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET (or, as it's also known, The Girls on 42nd Street) is about a worldly New York woman of the 1970's named Dusty.  Dusty is three months into shacking up with a guy and she's tired of listening to him bitch about her not having a job.  The final straw breaks when he asks her to tidy up the apartment while he's at work.  Dusty lulls his anger through seduction, and promises to do so.  Then, once he leaves, she tidies up the place by robbing him blind. 

Dusty takes the hot property to a less than reputable (is there any other kind?) pawn shop.  The owner offers her $30 for the TV and jewelry, but Dusty wants more.  The classy owner offers her $50 if she joins him in the back room.  She does, they do and they leave the pawn shop.  He heads off to fetch lunch for the two of them, while Dusty claims she is going to use a phone booth across the street.  Instead, she breaks into the shop to steal more money and a nice broach.  Even hustlers need to look glamorous.

Speaking of glamorous, our ever-resourceful heroine lands on the doorstep of Cherry, a transvestite hustler with a sharp tongue and tricks to spare.  Her clientele are strictly men and when a weekly appointment spots Dusty, Cherry generously steps aside, but the trick makes it clear that he will be back next week for some Cherry.

With all of Dusty's recent influx of income, she and Cherry go out on the town.  They end up at a bar where they spot Bob.  Bob, despite his Norman Bates demeanor, is a nice guy from Staten Island.  To nobody's surprise, Dusty goes home with Bob.  What is surprising is Dusty likes Bob so much that she doesn't accept money from him and doesn't want to rob him blind, even though he gave her keys to his home. 

Will Bob be the fairy tale ending for Dusty, our hustler heroine?  Will Cherry ever afford a less grandmotherly wig?  Will I give away the ending that, quite literally, comes out of nowhere?  I seriously considered it, but decided to leave you satisfied, but wanting more, like a good hustler should. 

As for the acting, there is a natural 1970's feel to it.  Honestly, the performances are better than they should be.  Same goes for the dialogue.  The words are brazen, shocking and probably offensive to 21st Century ears, but there is honesty there.  Especially when Dusty doesn't want Bob to stare too deep into her eyes and when Cherry waxes tragically realistic about being an aging transvestite hustler.  I found it easy to feel compassion for these characters despite some of their horrible behavior. 

SIDE NOTE: While researching this film on IMDb, I was shocked to learn that Harry Reems, the notorious DEEP THROAT actor, played Bob!  Actually, the three leads all used assumed names.  Laura Cannon played Dusty and Nell Flanagan played Cherry.  Further research revealed what I watched on TCM was an R-rated cut of an X-rated film, which explains a lot. 

In conclusion, if you dig obscure, gritty, indie films from the 1960's & 1970's, then FLESHPOT ON 42ND STREET may be the trick for you.  I have no regrets waking up to watch it at 1:30 am, and I would do it again.  Mainly because the DVD is out of print and is crazy expensive. 

Thank you for reading or listening to my half-blind words.

Freak Out, 

JLH 

P.S.  A different post about a different obscure film I watched in the middle of the night...

https://freakboyzone.blogspot.com/2019/01/freakboy-on-film-butcher-baker.html 

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My books & blogs...

http://thejlhcollective.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-collective.html