🔗 Share this article The Film Baby Review: An Astute Depiction of Queer Brazilian Hustlers Lost in the Established Order Evoking the urban restlessness and vibrancy of São Paulo, Marcelo Caetano’s gripping drama zooms in on those who live on the fringes of an perpetually shifting metropolis. Newly freed from juvenile prison, 18-year-old Wellington (João Pedro Mariano) finds himself at a crossroads; abandoned by his parents, the wide-eyed young man seeks comfort in the arms of others. On an evening out with his boisterous group of LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming friends, Wellington meets Ronaldo (Ricardo Teodoro), a muscular, charming hustler significantly older than his age. Illuminated by the wavering neon of a adult movie theater, their initial encounter is sensuous and erotic, with an tinge of peril. Ronaldo promptly ushers Wellington to the underground scene of sex work and drug dealing. A Portrait of Empathy Instead of Exploitation The film illustrates Wellington’s new life of crime with gentle sympathy as opposed to as a exploitative warning story. Now adopting the moniker Baby, he engages in his paid liaisons with swaggering confidence and poignant gullibility. To his customers, Wellington offers more than his youth and his body, but also fleeting acts of kindness. In the electrifying chaos of São Paulo, filled with crowded backstreets and vibrant storefronts, there’s a gnawing loneliness, as adrift individuals hold fast to one another for momentary bliss. "The urban landscape might be riddled with risk, yet they are also the space where they can discover chosen kin, too." A Complex Relationship of Love and Control Ronaldo is at once a romantic interest and a protective father figure to Wellington, but their relationship is derailed by envy and financial instability. Dangers posed by dubious individuals in the criminal underworld are overshadowed by the dread of state surveillance and imprisonment, represented by the looming presence of police officers on patrol. Baby is most powerful as an astute portrait of the disenfranchised individuals who have been failed by the system. The film stands as a moving exploration into resilience, found community, and the pursuit of identity within a harsh urban landscape.