90
Majidi masterfully balances the serious subtext with entertaining vignettes.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
100
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
This modestly produced family drama has all the poignancy and humor associated with today's vibrant Iranian film industry.
50
The New York Times by Janet Maslin
In Children of Heaven, life is sweet despite countless hardships, and no reality beyond the economic intrudes upon a fairy tale atmosphere. Only through heavy-handed emphasis does the quest for new sneakers take on any greater meaning.
80
Chicago Reader by Lisa Alspector
One problem leads to another, but because the children's points of view are so powerfully rendered, the plot of this elegant and lightly magical-realist 1997 drama never seems merely coincidental.
78
Austin Chronicle by Marjorie Baumgarten
The poverty that is at the heart of the situation is in prominent relief, yet there is a happiness about their lives that defies sheer gloss. Here is a brother and sister who truly love each other and are bonded by their complicity.
30
Village Voice by Michael Atkinson
Clumsily staged (a bike accident any 15-year-old Super-8 maven could’ve cut better), lit like a soap opera, and acted with all the bribed relish of a peanut butter commercial, Majidi’s movie is merely the simplistic bid being made by every national industry impatient for mass audience attention. Gallingly, it may succeed.
100
Chicago Tribune by Michael Wilmington
Though Majidi draws from familiar Iranian sources, he's made something unique and moving: a sweet tale with a stirring finish.
100
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
This is a pellucid and gentle film, made with the simplicity and grace of a children's tale and yet its humour, emotional clarity and directness speak directly to adults and children alike - and the pre-teen principals shoulder an adult burden of performance.
75
San Francisco Chronicle by Peter Stack
Haunting in its charm, Children of Heaven opens a window on both contemporary Tehran and the hopeful heart of childhood. This lovely, amusing film deserves a big audience -- especially families. It touches on the innocence of children with tremendous affection.
100
Chicago Sun-Times by Roger Ebert
Children of Heaven is very nearly a perfect movie for children, and of course that means adults will like it, too.