The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the System
Channelling the metropolitan unease and pulsating life of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's unflinching drama zooms in on those who live on the fringes of an ever-changing metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man discovers refuge in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his boisterous group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler more than twice his age. Bathed in the wavering neon of a XXX cinema, their introductory rendezvous is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the shadowy world of sex work and drug dealing.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now using the alias Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with swaggering confidence and touching naivety. To his customers, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, overflowing with crowded backstreets and brightly painted facades, there’s a persistent isolation, as adrift individuals grasp at one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape can be filled with danger, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complex Dynamic of Love and Control
Ronaldo is both a lover and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by possessiveness and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from shady figures in the criminal underworld seem minor next to the fear of government monitoring and incarceration, epitomized by the hovering figures of police officers on patrol.
Baby is particularly impactful as a perceptive study of the forgotten souls who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film ultimately serves as a moving exploration into making ends meet, chosen family, and the quest for purpose within a demanding urban landscape.
