Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the city's relentless energy and pulsating life of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama zooms in on those who exist on the margins of an ever-changing metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his lively group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler more than twice his age. Shrouded in the wavering neon of a neon-lit porn cinema, their first meeting is physical and passionate, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the shadowy world of prostitution and selling drugs.
A Study of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding rather than as a exploitative warning story. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with brash fearlessness and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals cling on to one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape might be filled with danger, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Love and Control
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and economic precarity. Threats from dubious individuals in the underworld are overshadowed by the fear of institutional observation and imprisonment, symbolized by the looming presence of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as an astute portrait of the disenfranchised individuals who have been failed by the system. The film functions as a poignant exploration into survival, chosen family, and the quest for identity within a harsh urban landscape.
