| Director | Steve McQueen |
|---|---|
| Genre | drama film, erotic film |
| Runtime | 100 min |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Budget | £4.1 million |
| Box office | $20.4 million |
Brandon Sullivan is an executive living in New York City; he frequently has sex with prostitutes, views pornography, and masturbates several times daily, including at work. One day, during his morning commute, Brandon makes eye contact with a woman wearing an engagement ring on the subway. She initially reciprocates but becomes uncomfortable; when they exit, she disappears into the crowd. Brandon shares a shallow friendship with his adulterous boss, David. One night, after David fails to hit on women at a club, Brandon has sex in a back alley with a woman David was pursuing.
Brandon has been ignoring calls from his sister, Sissy, who is a lounge singer. He arrives at his apartment and is startled to find her in his shower. Sissy has a few gigs in the city and asks to stay. Brandon reluctantly accepts, uncomfortable around her outgoing personality. He later hears her pleading on the telephone with her lover not to reject her. Brandon and David watch Sissy perform "New York, New York" in a bar, making Brandon emotional. David flirts with Sissy and notices scars from self-inflicted wounds on her arms. Sissy has sex with David in her brother's bedroom. Overhearing them, Brandon becomes disturbed and goes out jogging. Later that night, Sissy attempts to lie in bed with Brandon for comfort, but he angrily yells at her to leave.
After the computer system at Brandon's company is infected with a virus, they find that his hard drive is full of pornography. David assumes Brandon's intern is responsible. Brandon goes on a date with co-worker Marianne, who is recently separated. The date starts uneasy, as Brandon arrives late and Marianne is bemused at his dismissal of commitment in relationships, but things improve after they share real chemistry and go home separately on amicable terms.
That night, Sissy accidentally catches Brandon masturbating in his bathroom. Though her initial reaction is lighthearted, Brandon becomes outraged and physically restrains and berates her. Shortly after, she finds his laptop open on a pornographic webcam site; Brandon slams it shut, and an unnerved Sissy leaves. Brandon disposes of his sexual paraphernalia, including his laptop.
At work, he makes further advances on Marianne and the two get a hotel room. After foreplay, Brandon is unable to get an erection. Marianne leaves as he dejectedly sits away from her. Brandon later has aggressive sex with a prostitute in the same room.
Back at his apartment, Brandon chastises Sissy for sleeping with David and tells her to leave. She says that, as family, they should help each other, but Brandon rejects her and calls her a "parasite". He leaves after Sissy highlights Brandon's own troubles.
Brandon goes to a bar and almost seduces a woman until her boyfriend intervenes. After he explicitly describes to him what he was going to do to her, the man brutally beats him outside. When he is barred from another club, he goes to a nearby gay bar and is fellated by a man in a backroom. After leaving, he listens to a voicemail from Sissy, crying as she says that they are not bad people but just come from a bad place. Brandon has a threesome with prostitutes.
While Brandon is riding the subway home, the passengers are asked to disembark due to a police emergency, implying a suicide. He frantically calls Sissy, but she does not answer. Arriving home, he finds Sissy on the bathroom floor covered in blood, having slashed her wrists. He attempts to stop the bleeding while phoning for help. She survives and he affectionately comforts her in the hospital. After leaving, Brandon breaks down in the rain, sobbing alone.
On the subway, Brandon makes eye contact with the woman with the engagement ring again. This time, she doesn’t look away. She stands up, ready to exit the train at an approaching stop. Brandon continues staring at her.