The Film Baby Review: An Astute Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the urban restlessness and pulsating life of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's unflinching drama zooms in on those who exist on the margins of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; abandoned by his parents, the wide-eyed 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 (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the flickering glow of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is intimate and charged, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the clandestine realm of prostitution and selling drugs.
A Study of Empathy Rather Than Exploitation
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a exploitative warning story. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with cocky bravado and touching naivety. To his customers, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with busy lanes and vibrant storefronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as unmoored souls cling on to one another for momentary bliss.
"The streets are filled with danger, yet they are where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complex Relationship of Love and Control
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by possessiveness and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the underworld are overshadowed by the anxiety about state surveillance and jail time, symbolized by the hovering figures of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is particularly impactful as an astute portrait of the lost people who have slipped through the gaps the established structure. The film functions as a heartfelt look into making ends meet, non-biological kinship, and the pursuit of self within a demanding urban landscape.
