Severely overrated sentimental fluff.

Rating: 4/10 (26 January 2003)

In a sea of beautiful masterpieces from Iran, somehow this piece of drek got snapped up for the kind of distribution and attention that dozens of other films deserved. It's the cliched story of a poor brother and sister who have to get by with one pair of beat-up old shoes between them. Direct references to Bicycle Thieves abound.
Samira Makhmalbaf's The Apple, one of the greatest films of modern cinema, is still unavailable on video and has been seen by almost no one in the states. Until Kiarostami won the Palme D'Or for Taste of Cherry, his films were only seen by a handful of lucky individuals who made it to the right film festivals. Samira's father, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, whose films make it to theaters but never with too much attention, and other great artists like Bahram Bayzai and Daryush Mehrju'i, are overshadowed in America, somehow, by Majidi. Despite having made what might be the most significant Iranian film in history, The Cow - shown at Venice in the early 70's and introducing the country's cinema to the world - Mehrju'i and Bayzai - considered to be their best by the Iranians themselves - collectively have fewer films available on video than does Majidi, in his relatively young career.

Children of Heaven is the only Iranian film that I have seen which seems artificial. The performances are not good, the plot seems hackneyed and contrived, and it's sentimental - there's lot of crying and yelling. The children aren't real people, but little angels beset upon by this harsh life. The little boy hero is even the best student in his class AND a great athlete.
Jafar Panahi's The White Balloon and Abbas Kiarostami's Where Is The Friend's Home are both very similar storywise, but infinitely more touching, substantial and genuine.