Baby Review: A Sharp Depiction of Queer Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the System
Evoking the city's relentless energy and vibrancy of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's gripping drama centres on those who live on the fringes of an constantly evolving metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; left behind by his parents, the wide-eyed young man discovers refuge in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his boisterous group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington crosses paths with Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler more than twice his age. Shrouded in the flickering glow of a adult movie theater, their introductory rendezvous is intimate and charged, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the clandestine realm of sex work and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Exploitation
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy instead of as a exploitative warning story. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with brash fearlessness and touching naivety. To his clients, Wellington lends not only his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, filled with bustling alleyways and vibrant storefronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as adrift individuals grasp at one another for temporary happiness.
"The streets might be fraught with peril, yet they are the place where they can find their own family, too."
A Complicated Relationship of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by jealousy and economic precarity. Dangers posed by nefarious characters in the criminal underworld are overshadowed by the dread of state surveillance and imprisonment, represented by the constant sight of police officers in the area.
Baby is especially potent as an astute portrait of the forgotten souls who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film stands as a moving exploration into survival, found community, and the quest for identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.