Handsome (inside and out) nineteen-year-old best friends Willy (Sayyid El Alami) and Jojo (Amaury Foucher) spend all their time together. The childhood friends live in semi-rural western France near Angers. There they immerse themselves in the colourful local motocross scene, and along with their rowdy bunch of friends, also get up to all the usual macho teenage antics – daredevil stunts, chatting up girls, sneaking in to the local swimming pool, boozy nights and general tomfoolery. Willy’s dad died ten years ago and Willy still feels his loss immeasurably, struggling to accept his mum’s (Florence Janas) new boyfriend (Mathieu Demy). His father was good friends with Jojo’s father David (Damien Bonnard), who is the coach for the motocross team and who, alongside burly assistant coach Teddy (Artus Solaro) is training Jojo to be the next motocross champion. Jojo, in return, is keen to impress his dad.

It’s near the end of the summer term when, one night, Willy stumbles upon Jojo having sex with Teddy. Jojo hadn’t mentioned being gay before, and Willy is upset that Jojo hadn’t felt able to confide in him. Jojo reveals that he and Teddy have been having sex for a while. Teddy, however, also has a very heavily pregnant girlfriend. Willy and Jojo remain best friends after this and carry on as before. Shortly afterwards, however, word gets out about Jojo’s queerness and not everyone in the village is happy about this, leading to a dramatic series of events.

Block Pass is a beautifully-shot, stylish coming-of-age drama that treads an unpredictable path. Directed by Antoine Chevrollier, anyone who grew up queer in the closet in a semi-rural environment without allies will connect to the angst felt as those around you explore their youthful sexuality without constraints. Themes include love, loss, friendship, small town life, masculinity, parental expectations, coming-of-age and coming out. Alicia Cadot’s excellent casting brings together the chemistry between Willy and Jojo. Alami and Faucher portray their friendship wonderfully. Leonie Dahan-Lamort also shines as Marina, a 21-year-old girlfriend of Willy’s. I’d have liked her to have a bigger role. Artus Solaro could also have had a bigger role. He is perfect as the gruff closeted bisexual Teddy, a man of few words. Chevrollier’s direction authentically recreates small town, often brutal, teenage life in any Western country, with added colour and striking cinematography. All complemented by a well-thought-out script. With a premiere at Cannes Film Festival and three nominations including Critics Week Grand Prize and Queer Palm, Block Pass deserves a wide audience.

A great film where everything comes together.