Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama focuses on those who live on the fringes of an ever-changing metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; left behind by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his rowdy group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington crosses paths with Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the pulsating light of a neon-lit porn cinema, their introductory rendezvous is sensuous and erotic, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the shadowy world of sex work and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Empathy 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 cocky bravado and poignant gullibility. To his patrons, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, overflowing with bustling alleyways and brightly painted facades, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals hold fast to one another for momentary bliss.
"The city might be filled with danger, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by jealousy and economic precarity. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the shadow economy seem minor next to the anxiety about government monitoring and incarceration, symbolized by the constant sight of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is especially potent as a perceptive study of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the system. The film stands as a heartfelt look into survival, non-biological kinship, and the quest for self within a unforgiving urban landscape.