Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Adrift in the System
Capturing the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama zooms in on those who exist on the margins of an constantly evolving metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an evening out with his lively group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Illuminated by the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their initial encounter is physical and passionate, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the underground scene of the sex trade and selling drugs.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Exploitation
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding as opposed to as a exploitative warning story. Now adopting the moniker 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, filled with crowded backstreets and colourful shopfronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as unmoored souls grasp at one another for momentary bliss.
"The city might be filled with danger, yet they are 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 bond is sabotaged by jealousy and monetary insecurity. Intimidation from shady figures in the criminal underworld are overshadowed by the anxiety about government monitoring and imprisonment, represented by the constant sight of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is particularly impactful as a perceptive study of the forgotten souls who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film functions as a poignant look into survival, chosen family, and the pursuit of self within a unforgiving urban landscape.
