Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the System
Evoking the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama zooms in on those who live on the fringes of an ever-changing metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; deserted by his parents, the innocent young man discovers refuge in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the flickering glow of a neon-lit porn cinema, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the underground scene of prostitution and drug dealing.
A Study of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with brash fearlessness and poignant gullibility. To his clients, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, teeming with crowded backstreets and colourful shopfronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as unmoored souls cling on to one another for momentary bliss.
"The streets are riddled with risk, yet they are where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by envy and economic precarity. Threats from shady figures in the shadow economy pale in comparison to the dread of state surveillance and incarceration, represented by the looming presence of police officers on patrol.
Baby is especially potent as a perceptive study of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the social system. The film functions as a poignant look into survival, chosen family, and the quest for purpose within a demanding urban landscape.