Las Acacias

Directed by Pablo Giorgelli. Starring Germán de Silva, Hebe Duarte, Nayra Calle Mamani 12A cert, IFI, Dublin, 85 min

ON THE BACK roads of Paraguay, grouchy middle-aged trucker Ruben picks up Jacinta, a young woman hoping to find work across the border in Buenos Aires. The professional road hog is doing a solid for a friend in picking her up, but he’s none too happy about taking on a second, unexpected passenger; nobody said anything about a baby.

Somewhere along the way, Ruben takes a liking to both Jacinta and her five-month-old daughter Anahi, an impeccably behaved and adorable dark-haired moppet given to achingly poignant peekaboo games. It’s only a matter of hours before defences come down and the little caravan starts to look suspiciously like a makeshift family.

Pablo Giorgelli's snail-chasing drama, winner of the Caméra d'Or at Cannes last May, ticks all the boxes for the festival circuit. A near-wordless South American entry in the Brief Encountersubset, Las Acaciasis typical of the new international breed of export film. It's foreign, yet there's hardly any subtitles to read; it looks dusty and real yet unfolds as a fairytale; it's contemplatively paced and aimed squarely at the "slow film" crowd.

Still, arriving hot on the heels of Weekendand Mme Chambon, two far superior Before Sunrise-themed projects, Las Acaciasfeels a little underpowered and overdue. Get used to looking out the truck window at the changing landscape early on; there's plenty more where that came from.