The Film Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and pulsating life of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama focuses on those who inhabit the outskirts of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; abandoned by his parents, the wide-eyed young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his boisterous 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 introductory rendezvous is physical and passionate, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the clandestine realm of the sex trade and narcotics trafficking.
A Study of Empathy Rather Than Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now going by the name of Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with swaggering confidence and poignant gullibility. To his clients, Wellington provides not just 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 persistent isolation, as adrift individuals cling on to one another for temporary happiness.
"The urban landscape might be fraught with peril, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by jealousy and monetary insecurity. Threats from dubious individuals in the shadow economy pale in comparison to the anxiety about institutional observation and jail time, represented by the hovering figures of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is particularly impactful as a keen observation of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the social system. The film functions as a poignant examination into survival, non-biological kinship, and the search for self within a unforgiving urban landscape.
