Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the Established Order
Capturing the urban restlessness and pulsating life of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an ever-changing metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; left behind by his parents, the impressionable young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his boisterous group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler significantly older than his age. Shrouded in the pulsating light of a neon-lit porn cinema, their introductory rendezvous is physical and passionate, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the underground scene of prostitution and narcotics trafficking.
A Portrait of Understanding Rather Than Exploitation
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding rather than as a exploitative warning story. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with swaggering confidence and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, filled with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as unmoored souls grasp at one another for temporary happiness.
"The streets are riddled with risk, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by jealousy and financial instability. Dangers posed by nefarious characters in the shadow economy pale in comparison to the anxiety about institutional observation and incarceration, represented by the hovering figures of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is especially potent as an astute portrait of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the social system. The film stands as a poignant exploration into resilience, chosen family, and the search for self within a demanding urban landscape.
