Baby Review: An Astute Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order
Evoking the metropolitan unease and vibrancy of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama zooms in on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; abandoned by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his lively group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler more than twice his age. Illuminated by the flickering glow of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is sensuous and erotic, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the clandestine realm of prostitution and narcotics trafficking.
A Portrait of Understanding Rather Than Sensationalism
The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now going by the name of Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with brash fearlessness and touching naivety. To his clients, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also instances of tenderness.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, overflowing with crowded backstreets and brightly painted facades, there’s a persistent isolation, as adrift individuals cling on to one another for fleeting joy.
"The urban landscape might be fraught with peril, yet they are the place where they can discover chosen kin, too."
A Complex Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by possessiveness and economic precarity. Dangers posed by shady figures in the underworld are overshadowed by the dread of institutional observation and imprisonment, represented by the looming presence of police officers on patrol.
Baby is particularly impactful as an astute portrait of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the system. The film ultimately serves as a moving examination into survival, non-biological kinship, and the search for identity within a demanding urban landscape.