A young social worker takes on the case of Baby, a 21-year-old who acts like, the clues in his name, a baby. What she doesn’t realise is that the family to whom ‘Baby’ belongs, the Wadsworths, keep him in that state by stopping his development via negative reinforcement in the form of an electric cattle prod. And there’s other forms of abuse that poor Baby has to endure which gives this film a real layer of grittiness. This film would NEVER be made today.

I first heard about The Baby from a friend who had seen it. Of course, any fucked up film that he saw he would instantly inform me of and so I had to see it too.

And I FULLY agreed with him! There is no other film like The Baby and nothing can prepare you for it. It’s hard to believe that director Ted Post also made such a mainstream movie as the Dirty Harry sequel Magnum Force the same year. The Baby must have astonished audiences and critics alike when it was first released. Indeed, it continues to make viewers say ‘What the holy fuck?!’ even today. That takes some doing!

When I watched it today for this review I was getting strong Warhol/Paul Morrissey vibes. If this fantastic duo had decided to make a very left-field horror shocker back in the day based on the same story, I bet it would resemble Post’s film. Witness the Warhol Factory-esque gathering at Baby’s birthday party, resplendent with freaky, trippy lighting and eccentric guests. Also, Ruth Roman as the fierce matriarch Mrs Wadsworth would take top billing in any Warhol movie with her huge hair, husky voice and scary make-up. I’m a big fan.

In fact, I’m a big fan of this movie full stop. I’m so glad that the ever-brilliant Arrow Films have released this gem onto Blu-Ray in a gorgeous print. Lovers of cult cinema should rejoice.

Wanna utterly silence your guests? Wanna freak out relatives at a *gag* vile family reunion? Slip on The Baby and watch their reactions. Yes, it’s that good!

4.5 out of 5 stars