The Film Baby Review: An Astute Portrait of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Lost in the System
Capturing the city's relentless energy and dynamic spirit of São Paulo, filmmaker Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Fresh out of juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor 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 boisterous group of queer and non-binary friends, Wellington encounters Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a strapping, magnetic hustler significantly older than his age. Illuminated by the wavering neon of a adult movie theater, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the shadowy world of prostitution and drug dealing.
A Portrait of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism
Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy as opposed to as a sensationalist cautionary tale. Now going by the name of Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with cocky bravado and touching naivety. To his customers, Wellington provides not just his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness.
In the feverish excitement of São Paulo, filled with bustling alleyways and vibrant storefronts, there’s a persistent isolation, as rootless people cling on to 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 connection is thrown off course by possessiveness and monetary insecurity. Dangers posed by dubious individuals in the criminal underworld are overshadowed by the dread of institutional observation and incarceration, represented by the looming presence of police officers on patrol.
Baby is most powerful as a perceptive study of the disenfranchised individuals who have slipped through the gaps the social system. The film stands as a heartfelt look into survival, non-biological kinship, and the pursuit of identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.