Baby Review: A Sharp Portrait of Queer Brazilian Survivors Adrift in the Established Order

Channelling the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama zooms in on those who inhabit the outskirts of an ever-changing metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (the actor João Pedro Mariano) faces a critical turning point; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man seeks comfort in the arms of others.

On an late-night excursion with his lively group of gay 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 XXX cinema, their first meeting is intimate and charged, with an hint of risk. Ronaldo quickly introduces Wellington to the underground scene of the sex trade and drug dealing.

A Study of Understanding Instead of Sensationalism

Caetano depicts Wellington’s new life of crime with tender empathy instead of as a melodramatic morality play. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he approaches his transactional encounters with brash fearlessness and poignant gullibility. To his clients, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also moments of care.

In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, overflowing with crowded backstreets and colourful shopfronts, there’s a deep-seated solitude, as adrift individuals hold fast to one another for temporary happiness.

"The urban landscape are filled with danger, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."

A Complex Dynamic of Affection and Power

Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by jealousy and economic precarity. Dangers posed by nefarious characters in the criminal underworld pale in comparison to the fear of state surveillance and jail time, symbolized by the looming presence of police officers making their rounds.

Baby is especially potent as an astute portrait of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the established structure. The film functions as a moving look into survival, chosen family, and the search for identity within a unforgiving urban landscape.