The Film Baby Review: An Astute Portrait of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Evoking the city's relentless energy and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an ever-changing 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 innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his rowdy group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler more than twice his age. Illuminated by the flickering glow of a neon-lit porn cinema, their introductory rendezvous is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the shadowy world of prostitution and selling drugs.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Exploitation
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now using the alias Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with brash fearlessness and poignant gullibility. To his patrons, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, teeming with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals grasp at one another for temporary happiness.
"The city might be fraught with peril, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is both a lover and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by jealousy and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from shady figures in the underworld are overshadowed by the fear of state surveillance and jail time, epitomized by the hovering figures of police officers in the area.
Baby is most powerful as a keen observation of the forgotten souls who have slipped through the gaps the established structure. The film functions as a moving examination into survival, found community, and the pursuit of purpose within a demanding urban landscape.
