The Film Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of LGBTQ+ Brazilian Survivors Lost in the Established Order

Evoking the metropolitan unease and pulsating life of São Paulo, director Marcelo Caetano's bracing drama centres on those who exist on the margins of an ever-changing metropolis. Recently released from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) stands at a pivotal juncture; deserted by his parents, the impressionable young man discovers refuge in the arms of others.

On an night on the town with his lively group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (actor Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Illuminated by the pulsating light of a XXX cinema, their first meeting is physical and passionate, with an edge of danger. Ronaldo swiftly initiates Wellington to the clandestine realm of the sex trade and narcotics trafficking.

A Study of Empathy Instead of Exploitation

The director portrays Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy rather than as a exploitative warning story. Now using the alias Baby, he enters his commercial trysts with cocky bravado and endearing innocence. To his customers, Wellington provides not just 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 gnawing loneliness, as adrift individuals grasp at one another for temporary happiness.

"The city can be riddled with risk, yet they are where they can find their own family, too."

A Complicated Relationship of Affection and Power

Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a guardian-like mentor to Wellington, but their connection is thrown off course by envy and financial instability. Intimidation from nefarious characters in the underworld are overshadowed by the fear of state surveillance and incarceration, symbolized by the constant sight of police officers in the area.

Baby is particularly impactful as a keen observation of the lost people who have fallen through the cracks the established structure. The film functions as a moving exploration into survival, found community, and the search for identity within a harsh urban landscape.