A Study in Simplicity

Rating: 7/10 (14 October 2013)

Children of Heaven (or Bacheha-ye Aseman) is a poignant human drama by the acclaimed Iranian director Majid Majidi. Majid Majidi's films are defined by their quiet flow, in the course of which tender human feelings, emotions and relationships are explored in an equally tender manner which rarely fail to touch the heart in a calm and soothing fashion. Children of Heaven is no exception to that.
The primary characters of this story are two young children – a young boy and his younger sister. The story is told mostly from their perspective – and those of who are past our childhoods are allowed a trip back into the world of children. A world in which a tiny problem can cast a much larger shadow and another bigger issue is unable to cast any shadow at all. Children live in their own world, with their own hopes and fears and Majidi lets us peek into the world of these two children for some time and perhaps, through them, into a world that was once our own as well. The protagonists are disarmingly innocent and captivate the viewer who watch their life unfold while in their shoes. Shoes, of course, are an integral part of the plot. To elaborate more would be meaningless, as, in the end, Children of Heaven is as much about shoes as Through the Looking Glass is about mirrors.
Majidi is dexterous at weaving stories around the small matters and joys in life. Children of Heaven is a classic example of how soft-spoken movies can move the heart, how a tiny drama can be more expressive than the grandest of magnum opuses and how simple joys are enough to fill a life and render it the deepest meaning and the most beautiful colors.