Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the city's relentless energy and pulsating life of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s bracing drama zooms in on those who inhabit the outskirts of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; left behind by his parents, the wide-eyed young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his boisterous group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler more than twice his age. Bathed in the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their introductory rendezvous is intimate and charged, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the shadowy world of prostitution and drug dealing.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding as opposed to as a melodramatic morality play. Now using the alias Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with cocky bravado and endearing innocence. To his patrons, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, filled with bustling alleyways and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals hold fast to one another for momentary bliss.
"The urban landscape 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 sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their bond is sabotaged by possessiveness and economic precarity. Dangers posed by dubious individuals in the shadow economy seem minor next to the anxiety about government monitoring and jail time, symbolized by the hovering figures of police officers in the area.
Baby is most powerful as a keen observation of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the system. The film stands as a heartfelt exploration into resilience, non-biological kinship, and the search for purpose within a demanding urban landscape.
