The Film Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Lost in the Established Order
Evoking the city's relentless energy and vibrancy of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; deserted by his parents, the innocent young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.
On an late-night excursion with his rowdy group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a hunky, charismatic hustler significantly older than his age. Bathed in the wavering neon of a neon-lit porn cinema, their first meeting is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the shadowy world of the sex trade and narcotics trafficking.
A Study of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism
The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding rather than as a melodramatic morality play. Now going by the name of Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with swaggering confidence and poignant gullibility. To his patrons, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also moments of care.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, overflowing with bustling alleyways and brightly painted facades, there’s a persistent isolation, as unmoored souls cling on to one another for fleeting joy.
"The streets might be riddled with risk, yet they are also the space where they can forge familial bonds, too."
A Complicated Dynamic of Affection and Power
Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a sheltering paternal presence to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and financial instability. Threats from shady figures in the underworld seem minor next to the dread of institutional observation and incarceration, represented by the hovering figures of police officers in the area.
Baby is particularly impactful as an astute portrait of the lost people who have been failed by the established structure. The film stands as a moving exploration into making ends meet, non-biological kinship, and the search for self within a harsh urban landscape.
