Baby - English subtitled
Tender yet raw Brazilian drama about a young homosexual from São Paulo who seeks refuge in sex work after serving a prison sentence. During an exciting night, he meets Ronaldo, who is in his forties.
São Paulo’s streets can offer danger or opportunity, and for eighteen-year-old Wellington, they deliver both. After being released from a juvenile detention centre, Wellington finds himself alone and adrift, without any contact with his parents and lacking the resources to rebuild his life. He encounters Ronaldo, a mature and handsome sex worker, who gives him the nickname ‘baby’, takes him under his wing and teaches him new ways of surviving. Gradually, their fiery romance turns into a conflicting passion, oscillating between exploitation and protection, jealousy and complicity, and as he’s drawn further into Ronaldo’s world, Wellington must decide what he really wants from life.
It’s obvious that director Marcelo Caetano knows the streets of São Paulo well: he studied social sciences there. Like his 2017 debut, Body Electric, Baby is more than just an LGBTQ+ film. It is a narrative about love, loss and friendship. Caetano moves slowly between different social classes and subcultures, from porn cinemas in back alleys to saunas in luxurious suburban homes. A dynamic portrait with positive undertones.