The Good Intentions

Ana García Blaya's 2019 Argentine film tells the story of three siblings living in nineties Buenos Aires with a disorganised but loving father. Their mother's decision to move to Paraguay raises the question of which side the children will stay on, and the film follows it through ten-year-old Amanda. The director drew on her own childhood and set real family video recordings inside the film, which creates an odd closeness between fiction and document. Its honesty lies in fixing the father as neither saviour nor irresponsible; both are true at once. The child actors are natural. The story moves without incident and works better for a viewer not looking for a large conflict. Who it's for: viewers who like Argentine independent cinema and stories of childhood. Who it's not for: anyone wanting a strong plot, or who will find the nostalgic register excessive.