Beautiful story... possible hidden meaning?

Rating: Null/10 (13 December 2000)

`Children of Heaven,' (1997) Directed by Majid Majidi, is the story of a young boy who accidentally loses his sister's newly repaired shoes. They are a poor family and the lost pair happens to be her only pair. The remainder of the film is spent with the two children trying to figure out how to replace them without their father (who job is serving tea) and mother (who is seriously ill) finding out.
The film is special in that every moment seems to add to a deeper understanding of the compassion and humanity of each character. Furthermore, it is impossible for me to imagine a Hollywood film coaxing performances out of its stable of actors in the way this director achieves with these amateur actors.
As mentioned, the family is dirt poor. The father is of Turkish decent and works a menial job serving tea. When he returns home from work, he shows the duplicity that makes us all human. On the one hand he yells at his son, Ali, for not accomplishing his chores. Ali offers no rebuttal, because to admit where he was would be to admit he has lost his sister's only shoes. He scolds Ali, `What are your duties in this house?! To eat, sleep and play?! You're not a kid anymore! You're nine years old!' he goes on to say that by Ali's age he was already working to support the family. Then, within moments his softer side comes out. `I serve tea all day at the company but Zahra's has a special taste.' This makes his daughter beam with pride.

The mom has a need for a surgery that they can't afford. The dad knows he can't afford it so instead, he uses scare tactics to discourage her from hoping for the surgery. He tells her he knows of other women who have been crippled by the surgery.
The story later focuses on Ali's running ability. There is going to be a race for children. The third place prize is a new pair of sneakers. Ali promises Zahra he will come in third and win her the shoes.
The suspense builds as he runs the race. Just at the end, as he is jockeying for third position, another boy intentionally knocks him down. With Herculean effort and determination Ali gets up and bolts for the finish line. He accidentally comes in first. His coach and classmates cheer, but he cries (partly because his shabby shoes have caused numerous blisters and lesions on his feet, but mostly because he has won the wrong prize.
The father on the other hand, has been window shopping for shoes, and finally has the money to buy some for his children. The film ends with Ali staggering into the shared courtyard where he lives. He sticks his blistered feet in the central fountain with his head hung low, not knowing the father will be returning home with shoes for them.

`The Color of Paradise' (1999) also directed by Majid Majidi, is a gorgeous film, both for the film's story and characters, as well as for the beautiful mountain scenery as a setting. The story depicts the life of a blind 8-year-old boy. His widowed father wants to get rid of him (because he doesn't fit into the father's plans for a new marriage.) Mohammad is brilliant boy; we figure this out just in the opening scenes. Just as in `Children of Heaven,' the director richly develops the characters. Mohammad is loved by just about everyone, except for his father. The father sees the blind boy as a burdensome. But to everyone else, he is a gift, and provides insights hitherto unseen (as depicted in several scenes both to the sighted  as with his sister's classmates & teacher -- and to the unsighted, as with the blind carpenter with whom he is sent to apprentice.) The film is a great tragedy though moments of the joys of life are well depicted.
Bear with me now. Just as George C. Scott's character, Justin Playfair, in `They might be Giants' pulled clues out of thin air that may not have been actual, he nevertheless came to a conclusion. So play Joanne Woodward's role and be Dr. Watson to my delusional fantasy for a moment.
In the films I have seen from Iran, I ask, `Why children as the actors?' My instinct is that telling subtle stories through children means one is less likely to offend Government censors. But if the story is about more than the beautiful drama and story on the surface, (which are worthy in their own right) then what are they about?
A little history and a few facts. (Stop rolling your eyes.) 90% of all Muslims today are Sunni. In Iran, the population is largely Shiite. The majority of Iranians are Persians, not Arabs (this is part of the reasons behind the tension between Iran and Iraq.) The Iranians speak Farsi and not Arabic. Once upon a time, the Shiites were persecuted (they still are in Iraq and in some other Arab nations.) To escape persecution the Shiite's adopted a practice called `tagiya' (concealment), hiding their beliefs. All this concealment changed in Persia in 1502 when the Safavids won control of Persia, and proclaimed Shiism as the state religion. They invited all Shiites to move to Persia. (Just for the record, what was left of the adherents of Zoroastrianism of Persia had already moved to India to avoid having to convert to Islam.)
The divisions between Sunni and Shiism immerged almost immediately following the Prophet Mohammed's death. Since Mohammed had no heir apparent, most of his followers sought to have an elective Caliph (successor). Others (who became the Shiite sect) believed that his successor should be someone from Mohammed's bloodlines, and favored Mohammed's cousin Ali. (I find this aspect of Islam fascinating considering Mohammed gave such specific instruction on wills, divorce and other aspects of life. It seems strange that he left out instructions on succession.)
This 7th century question resulted in a bloody schism. Ali was eventually elected Caliph, only to be murdered. One of Ali's sons was ambushed an another poisoned. This points to why martyrdom is admired in the Shiite tradition, being traceable back to the murders of the innocent son's of Ali.
In reference to this admiration of martyrdom, professor Thomas Magstadt states, `Similar motives led Iranian children to walk through the minefields ahead of soldiers during the war against Iraq: the Ayatollah Khomeini assured them that martyrdom in the jihad against Iraq would give them immediate entry into heaven. (in his book "Nations and Governments," italics added.) I believe this is the key if there is a story hidden in the story. Perhaps the children in Majid Majidi's movies are allegories for the children mentioned by Dr. Magstadt.
Consider the titles  Paradise & Heaven... the place where martyrs go. Ali is fearful of his father's wrath. Though fearful, he is willing to help his sister by using his feet in the foot race to help his sister get some shoes. The children who walked ahead of the soldiers must have been terrified. Perhaps not at first, but certainly after the first explosion from a mine perhaps tripped by a friend. In the case of the Color of Paradise, it is a blind boy. Perhaps his blindness signifies the fact that the children who walked these minefields were blind (innocent) to what their role was in the eight year long war between Iran and Iraq.
If this is so, do the father characters represent Khomeini? He is a harsh man, but also (more in the Children of Heaven, than in Color of Paradise) is shown as a man who loves his children (this is not until the end in Color of Paradise when he is full of remorsful love.) It's just my rank speculation but that passage from Magstadt will leave me a believer in the possibility of deeeper meaning in the films on Iranian Children.