Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the urban restlessness and pulsating life of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama zooms in on those who inhabit the outskirts of an constantly evolving metropolis. Newly freed 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 night on the town with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler more than twice his age. Illuminated by the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the shadowy world of the sex trade and drug dealing.
A Study of Empathy Rather Than Exploitation
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 swaggering confidence and touching naivety. To his customers, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, teeming with busy lanes and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as unmoored souls hold fast to one another for temporary happiness.
"The city can be fraught with peril, yet they are the place where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complex Dynamic 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 financial instability. Threats from nefarious characters in the shadow economy are overshadowed by the fear of state surveillance and jail time, epitomized by the hovering figures of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is particularly impactful as a perceptive study of the forgotten souls who have fallen through the cracks the system. The film stands as a poignant look into survival, non-biological kinship, and the search for purpose within a demanding urban landscape.
