The Film Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Lost in the Established Order
Channelling the metropolitan unease and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's unflinching drama centres on those who inhabit the outskirts of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; abandoned by his parents, the wide-eyed young man finds solace in the arms of others.
On an night on the town with his lively group of gay and non-binary friends, Wellington crosses paths with Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler over double his age. Shrouded in the wavering neon of a adult movie theater, their initial encounter is intimate and charged, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the shadowy world of sex work and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Exploitation
The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with compassionate understanding instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now adopting the moniker 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 instances of tenderness.
In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, teeming with crowded backstreets and vibrant storefronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as adrift individuals cling on to one another for momentary bliss.
"The urban landscape can be riddled with risk, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."
A Complex Dynamic of Love and Control
Ronaldo is simultaneously a partner and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by possessiveness and financial instability. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the underworld seem minor next to the anxiety about institutional observation and imprisonment, represented by the constant sight of police officers making their rounds.
Baby is most powerful as a keen observation of the disenfranchised individuals who have been failed by the system. The film ultimately serves as a poignant look into making ends meet, found community, and the quest for identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.
