The Film Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Evoking the metropolitan unease and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama focuses on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; left behind by his parents, the impressionable young man discovers refuge in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his boisterous group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the flickering glow of a adult movie theater, their introductory rendezvous is intimate and charged, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the clandestine realm of prostitution and drug dealing.
A Study of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now going by the name of Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with brash fearlessness and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, overflowing with bustling alleyways and vibrant storefronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as rootless people cling on to one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape might be fraught with peril, yet they are also the space where they can find their own family, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Love and Control
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and economic precarity. Intimidation from shady figures in the shadow economy are overshadowed by the anxiety about government monitoring and jail time, symbolized by the looming presence of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as a keen observation of the disenfranchised individuals who have fallen through the cracks the social system. The film ultimately serves as a poignant look into making ends meet, non-biological kinship, and the search for identity within a demanding urban landscape.
