Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the city's relentless energy and vibrancy of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama zooms in on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor 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 late-night excursion with his lively group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler over double his age. Illuminated by the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the clandestine realm of the sex trade and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Empathy Instead of Exploitation
The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now going by the name of Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with brash fearlessness and endearing innocence. To his customers, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals hold fast to one another for fleeting joy.
"The city can be fraught with peril, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Love and Control
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and economic precarity. Dangers posed by dubious individuals in the underworld seem minor next to the fear of state surveillance and imprisonment, epitomized by the constant sight of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as a keen observation of the disenfranchised individuals who have slipped through the gaps the established structure. The film ultimately serves as a moving examination into resilience, found community, and the search for self within a unforgiving urban landscape.
