Title: Las Acacias
Year: 2011
Genre: Drama
Director: Pablo Giorgelli
Writer: Pablo Giorgelli, Salvador Roselli
Runtime: 82min
Cast: Germán de Silva, Hebe Duarte, Nayra Calle Mamani, Mónica Coca, Lili López
Prod.: AireCine, Utópica Cine, Proyecto Experience, Armonika Entertainment, Hibou Producciones, Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO), Instittuto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales (ICAA), Tarea Fina, Televisón Española (TVE), Travesia Productions
In Las Acacias, Rubén (Germán de Silva) is a truck driver who is asked to carry an unknown woman (Hebe Duarte), from Asuncion to Buenos Aires, on a journey of 1500 km (932 miles).
Some time ago, and after having heard it mentioned several times, a friend convinced me to see, as an exercise, the uruguayan film Whisky 2004. In the case of the national cinema, I had hitherto known only a few titles, because of prejudice. Something I do not expose as "the" revelation, but far from it. Just to make things clear.
Like many people, I have also always tended to incline more towards the big industry over the local or other types of cinematography, something on which, for better or for worse, I will not expand with. So, at the time of seeing something done by my compatriots, I have never been as open as I would like, and I admit it.
But, what's this all about? It is because I think it is sad, that a person have to deal with a movie, not as a recreational activity, but to be able to say later, that he did do the effort to see it. That he sacrificed. If we assume that with the audiovisual world in general we seek for entertainment, that the experience proved to be torturous, would make no sense, something that many fear to happen with what comes from South America or Europe.
Personally, Las Acacias had not called my attention, until recently, another friend, after seeing it, said to me, well ... I will not say that I remember his exact words, but pretty much it had seemed to him as a "nice little minimalist film, of a man carrying a woman to Buenos Aires." The end.
Still not quite convinced, I decided (though it cost me) to give it a try, and here is my verdict.
The possibilities to be shot, are as many as the variety in its scenarios. Also, and believe it or not, while a director could put us on a ship, others might choose a somewhat smaller space, such as a trucks cabin, in Pablo Giorgelli´s film. There is where we see happening the relationship between Rubén and Jacinta, and from the limits of that space, we do not leave much. Is it that, good or bad? Of the talent of it´s director, I think that, that depends.
Now ... When I say that, from there "we do not leave much," I do not mean it in a derogatory manner. There will be those who like to see large battles, as well as those who would be the supporters of something simpler, like "minimal stories", which is this case. Who said a truck driver and his passenger could not be interesting? It is just as valid as the ship or the war.
However, I would say that, for no lucid director should be enough to have his characters in full trip, doing nothing. Because, lets see... All fine, with minimalism. But to see a guy driving, and his passenger, motionless, and stay with it, we could just film ourselves and watch it later. I mean, if we wanted to make a movie, better to have something to say and really worthwhile (either with actions, dialogues, or whatever), but, in the end, something worth to be seen.
What happenes in Las Acacias is that Giorgelli takes minimalism to the extremes. With scenes where the image is quite limited to the shot/reverse shot, to see them, him, at the wheel, and her, watching the road, while taking care of her baby, Anahí (Nayra Street Mamani) .
At another point Rubén plays with the girl, with his right hand, while driving with the left one, and Jacinta sleeps. Or in another scene, Jacinta teaches Rubén some Guarani.
Along the route, driver and passenger get to know each other, though very slowly, due to a reserved Rubén. At first, neither is he capable of asking the mother for her name, or her daughter´s. Having very little conversation between them (but with a Reubén, increasingly opening) and with a few stopovers on the way, Giorgelli manages a pace that allows the film not to become eternal, thanks to a simple, but effective montage, and to the distribution that he gives to the dialogues and actions. Here is how he gets us to care about his characters and not fall asleep. As to the end, without being it a big deal, he achieves on making it touching, when they arrive to the argentinian capital.
Yet, and despite having positive things, Las Acacias fails to convince, because the simplicity of its language is too much, and because it lacks to explore more, a bond between two people, that is so little that does not justify an almost an hour and twenty five minutes of movie.
My rating: 4/10
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