Life is literally a treadmill where poor peasant farmer Jose Dumont drives the sugar cane crushing machine day-in, day-out with the help of his sons Tonio (Rodrigo Santoro) and "Kid" (Ravi Ramos Lacerda).

Piled onto the grinding existence is the knowledge that Tonio will have to avenge his older brother's death at the hands of their land-grabbing neighbours in a blood feud going back generations.

When the blood on his murdered sibling's shirt turns yellow, the 20-year-old Tonio knows he will have to act, perpetuating the vicious cycle of tit-for-tat killings.

Behind the Sun is told mostly through the eyes of Tonio's younger brother (Ravi Ramos Lacerda), who doesn't have a name, and is known only as "kid".

When he encounters a travelling circus, the exciting and disparate world marks the possibility of an escape for his brother from the hitherto inevitable round of killings.

It is up to Tonio to decide which path he chooses - he can either follow the wishes of his father and go along with ancient traditions or can make a change and break away from the destructive cycle that has taken place for centuries.

For the kid, this world of tradition and custom is an oppressive one, from which his only means of escape is through his imagination and dream world.

Kid helps Tonio realise that there is a world beyond the harsh and deadening existence. As Tonio's eyes are opened wider, it seems like he can finally understand what life is really about.

It is hard to believe that little Ravi Ramos Lacerda makes his feature film debut here. Not only does he prove to be an enormous success, and a natural on screen, but he without a doubt carries the movie.

Walter Carvalho's cinematography is outstanding, superbly evoking the terror of a chase through the sugar cane between Tonio and his rival using a hand-held camera to thrillingly raw effect.

Oscar-nominated Central Station director Walter Salles' film is a refreshing insight into what is a very simple story.

His decision to use real people instead of actors pays off - Flavia Marco Antonio's stunning fire-eating skills are hardly the sort of thing you expect to see Gwyneth Paltrow performing.

There's something for everyone sadness and happiness, love and revenge, the old and the new - just don't let the subtitles put you off.

Dalia Levy