The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and pulsating life of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an constantly evolving metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; abandoned by his parents, the wide-eyed young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his boisterous group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic 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 underground scene of sex work and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Empathy Instead of Sensationalism
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now using the alias Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with swaggering confidence and endearing innocence. To his patrons, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, teeming with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as unmoored souls grasp at one another for momentary bliss.
"The urban landscape can be filled with danger, yet they are where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and economic precarity. Threats from dubious individuals in the shadow economy are overshadowed by the fear of institutional observation and incarceration, epitomized by the constant sight of police officers on patrol.
Baby is particularly impactful as a keen observation of the lost people who have been failed by the system. The film stands as a heartfelt exploration into survival, chosen family, and the quest for identity within a demanding urban landscape.
