Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama centres on those who exist on the margins of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; deserted by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort 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 (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler over double his age. Shrouded in the flickering glow of a adult movie theater, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the underground scene of the sex trade and selling drugs.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Sensationalism
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with brash fearlessness and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, teeming with bustling alleyways and vibrant storefronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as rootless people hold fast to one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape might be filled with danger, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."
A Complex Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is both a lover and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by envy and economic precarity. Dangers posed by dubious individuals in the shadow economy pale in comparison to the anxiety about state surveillance and imprisonment, represented by the constant sight of police officers on patrol.
Baby is especially potent as a keen observation of the disenfranchised individuals who have fallen through the cracks the system. The film ultimately serves as a moving exploration into resilience, non-biological kinship, and the quest for self within a unforgiving urban landscape.
