The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the System
Channelling the city's relentless energy and pulsating life of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama centres on those who exist on the margins of an constantly evolving metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his lively group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler over double his age. Shrouded in the flickering glow of a neon-lit porn cinema, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the underground scene of the sex trade and selling drugs.
A Study of Empathy Rather Than Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now using the alias Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with swaggering confidence and touching naivety. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with crowded backstreets and brightly painted facades, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as unmoored souls cling on to one another for temporary happiness.
"The city are filled with danger, yet they are the place where they can find their own family, too."
A Complex Relationship of Love and Control
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their bond is sabotaged by envy and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from shady figures in the underworld pale in comparison to the fear of institutional observation and imprisonment, epitomized by the hovering figures of police officers on patrol.
Baby is especially potent as an astute portrait of the lost people who have slipped through the gaps the system. The film functions as a poignant look into making ends meet, found community, and the quest for identity within a harsh urban landscape.
