The Film Baby Review: An Astute Portrait of Queer Brazilian Survivors Lost in the Established Order
Evoking the urban restlessness and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama focuses 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; abandoned by his parents, the impressionable young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Shrouded in the wavering neon of a XXX cinema, their introductory rendezvous is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the clandestine realm of sex work and narcotics trafficking.
A Portrait of Understanding Rather Than Exploitation
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding instead of as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with brash fearlessness and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, filled with crowded backstreets and brightly painted facades, there’s a persistent isolation, as adrift individuals grasp at one another for temporary happiness.
"The urban landscape are fraught with peril, yet they are also the space where they can find their own family, too."
A Complex Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by possessiveness and monetary insecurity. Dangers posed by nefarious characters in the underworld seem minor next to the fear of state surveillance and imprisonment, epitomized by the constant sight of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is most powerful as a perceptive study of the disenfranchised individuals who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film stands as a poignant examination into making ends meet, found community, and the quest for purpose within a unforgiving urban landscape.
