Bad Boy Street *** (2012, Yann de Monterno, Florence d’Azémar, Kevin Miranda) – Classic Movie Review 12,975

Claude (Yann de Monterno), a middle-aged gay Frenchman, finds a hunky young American (Kevin Miranda) passed out drunk in the street and takes him home to look after him. One thing leads to another…

Writer/ director Todd Verow’s 2012 romantic drama film Bad Boy Street [Rue Des Mauvais Garçons] is photographed by Verow using available light and recycled materials whenever possible, which is very green of him, giving things a free and fresh feel, and a lot of atmosphere.

Bad Boy Street, mmm, yes, interesting, bit of a tall story, a kind of fairy tale really, but really rather good, with three appealing performances from the stars working hard to make it work and plenty of flavour, both Parisian and gay. Verow seems to know what he is doing, and seems to be enjoying it, which is infectious. The actors too.

Claude (Yann de Monterno), a middle-aged gay Frenchman, finds a hunky young American man passed out drunk in the street and takes him home to look after him as he has no ID on him. One thing leads to another…

Next morning the boy says his name is Brad (Kevin Miranda) but it turns out he’s famous. Claude’s best friend Catherine (Florence d’Azémar) isn’t entirely amused.

It’s easy to see what Claude sees in Brad, but Claude makes a good case for Brad to be attracted to him too, and Florence d’Azémar lights up Catherine, whose love for Claude convinces us of his lovability.

A lot of the drama unfolds in one central Paris apartment, so it runs like a stage play, but still Verow keeps it filmic, though it’s also nice when he gets his cameras outside, in the Paris streets, bar or cinema. He gets good value all the time.

Verow also appears as the star’s rather sinister gay agent Michael, who asks Claude to sign a whole series of non-disclosure papers. Hollywood satire, eh? The movie is none too pro American or pro Hollywood, that’s for sure.

In the Bad Boy department, nothing very untoward happens, with the sex and nudity discreet, but the film has to declare: ‘All actors appearing in this motion picture are 18 years of age or older. Proof of age and records are kept at BangorFilms, Boston.’

Actor and writer Kevin Miranda was born in France on March 28, 1987 and is known for La légende (2018), Bad Boy Street (2012) and Hollywood Girls (2012).

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