The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the Established Order
Channelling the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; abandoned by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Illuminated by the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is sensuous and erotic, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the clandestine realm of prostitution and selling drugs.
A Portrait of Understanding Rather Than Exploitation
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with brash fearlessness and touching naivety. To his customers, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, teeming with busy lanes and brightly painted facades, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as rootless people grasp at one another for momentary bliss.
"The streets might be fraught with peril, yet they are the place where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complex Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their bond is sabotaged by envy and monetary insecurity. Dangers posed by shady figures in the underworld are overshadowed by the fear of institutional observation and imprisonment, symbolized by the looming presence of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is most powerful as a perceptive study of the disenfranchised individuals who have fallen through the cracks the established structure. The film functions as a heartfelt exploration into resilience, chosen family, and the search for self within a harsh urban landscape.
