Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama focuses on those who exist on the margins of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; deserted by his parents, the wide-eyed young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler more than twice his age. Illuminated by the wavering neon of a neon-lit porn cinema, their initial encounter is sensuous and erotic, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the shadowy world of prostitution and narcotics trafficking.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Exploitation
The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a melodramatic morality play. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with cocky bravado and endearing innocence. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, teeming with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as rootless people grasp at one another for momentary bliss.
"The streets can be filled with danger, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by envy and economic precarity. Threats from nefarious characters in the underworld pale in comparison to the anxiety about state surveillance and imprisonment, represented by the constant sight of police officers on patrol.
Baby is particularly impactful as a perceptive study of the disenfranchised individuals who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film ultimately serves as a moving look into resilience, found community, and the search for identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.
