Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of Queer Brazilian Survivors Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama focuses on those who inhabit the outskirts of an constantly evolving metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; abandoned by his parents, the innocent young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his boisterous group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the flickering glow of a XXX cinema, their introductory rendezvous is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the shadowy world of sex work and selling drugs.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Exploitation
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with brash fearlessness and touching naivety. To his clients, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, teeming with crowded backstreets and vibrant storefronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as unmoored souls hold fast to one another for momentary bliss.
"The urban landscape might be riddled with risk, yet they are where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Love and Control
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their bond is sabotaged by jealousy and monetary insecurity. Threats from shady figures in the criminal underworld seem minor next to the fear of government monitoring and jail time, epitomized by the constant sight of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as a perceptive study of the lost people who have been failed by the social system. The film stands as a poignant look into survival, chosen family, and the pursuit of self within a harsh urban landscape.
