Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the System
Evoking the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama centres on those who live on the fringes of an ever-changing metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; abandoned by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his lively group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the shadowy world of sex work and narcotics trafficking.
A Study of Understanding Rather Than Sensationalism
The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with swaggering confidence and poignant gullibility. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the hectic energy of São Paulo, filled with bustling alleyways and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as unmoored souls hold fast to one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape might 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 sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the shadow economy seem minor next to the fear of state surveillance and jail time, epitomized by the hovering figures of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as an astute portrait of the lost people who have slipped through the gaps the system. The film functions as a poignant examination into making ends meet, chosen family, and the pursuit of identity within a harsh urban landscape.
