The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the metropolitan unease and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s unflinching drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; left behind by his parents, the wide-eyed young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his boisterous group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler more than twice his age. Bathed in the flickering glow of a adult movie theater, their first meeting is physical and passionate, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the underground scene of the sex trade and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Exploitation
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy rather than as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now using the alias Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with swaggering confidence and touching naivety. To his clients, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with bustling alleyways and vibrant storefronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as rootless people cling on to one another for momentary bliss.
"The urban landscape might be riddled with risk, yet they are the place where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Love and Control
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their bond is sabotaged by jealousy and economic precarity. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the shadow economy seem minor next to the fear of institutional observation and incarceration, symbolized by the hovering figures of police officers on patrol.
Baby is especially potent as a keen observation of the disenfranchised individuals who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film functions as a heartfelt exploration into making ends meet, non-biological kinship, and the quest for identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.
