This translates to MUST-SEE! It's a credulous incredible storytelling of a young brother and sister in Tehran, and the adventurous saga around one very important pair of sneakers.

The two young actors are amazing -- they play their guileless naïve sensitivity with such earnestness! Central character, Ali, the 9 year old brother, is Mir Farrokh Hashemian, who really carried the film with his legwork, and the younger sister Zahra is Bahareh Seddiqui, who contributed her restrained share of screen presence. The pair is so natural: those furrowed faces, anxious knitted brows -- the range of sad faces the two came up with! The bond between the brother and sister is so warm and joyful - in spite of misfortunes.

The storyline is seemingly simple. Such story-weaving knack writer-director Majid Majidi has -- he can make chasing along a streaming gutter into an intense dramatic episode! The story has the texture likened to a Thomas Hardy novel (poverty setting, episode after episode, turn of events),yet such a relishingly simple delivery. He doesn't have to tell it all on the screen -- little nuances and observations suffice.

It's heartening to see young children who are polite and respectful to their elders, responsible and caring in dealing with their everyday problems, and not give up -- such quiet fortitude in spite of disappointments, such tolerance of their circumstance yet still able to find joy in little things. We catch a smile here and there, e.g., when they enjoy the impromptu soap bubbles, or when he encouraged his sister by giving her small tokens.

This is an absolute gem of a family (value) film. Children's emotions untapped, yet adults are not left out -- touches of grown-up connections: the parents, the elderly couple next door, the shop-owners, all made this world very real.

The camerawork, and the well-designed use of sound mixed with accompanying music (different tonal quality instruments were applied) complemented this cinematic experience. A poetic ending -- there's a serenity about it all.

I hope "Children of Heaven" will win this year's 71st Academy Award Best Foreign Film Oscar -- it will receive its due exposure and more people will experience this gem.

Along the lines of poverty and shoes, I thought of the Italian 1978's "The Tree of the Wooden Clogs" by writer-director Ermanno Olmi. And, on a story with substance and good acting by an Iranian young boy, there's 1989's "Bashu, The Little Stranger", by writer-director Bahram Beizai. Both are movies to be appreciated.

When I repeatedly passed this film at the local library, I completely ignored it because it looked rather dull and I must admit I had a prejudice against Iranian films. I incorrectly assumed that the movie would somehow be anti-Western or full of Islamic anger. Boy, I am VERY glad I was proved wrong.

When I say "dull" above, I am referring to the incredibly simple and mundane plot--the movie is ACTUALLY far from dull. A boy loses his sister's shoes after he picks them up from the shoe repair shop and the rest of the movie consists of him and his sister trying to hide this from their parents. So, HOW does this merit a 9? Well, actually it came pretty close to a 10 (for that see the follow-up film The Color of Paradise)--it was that good. This is thanks to excellent acting by real people and a humanity about the film that crosses all cultures. Despite so many differences between the people of Iran and the United States, this film gave me a ray of hope due to characters' decency and sense of values. This film reminds me very much of the simple yet wonderful films by DeSica, such as Umberto D., The Miracle in Milan and Two Women.

In a poor Tehran neighborhood, Ali picks up a pair of shoes for his sister Zahra. He loses them while in a store buying potatoes. His father is a simple laborer and his mother is bedridden. He is desperate to hide the mistake from his father and decides to share his sneakers with his sister.

The shoes may be small but the stakes do not get much higher. That is the universal truth and that is the greatness of this movie. The family has so little that those shoes mean everything. The kids are terrific. One can really feel their fear and embarrassment. These are big time performances and they have great humanity. The tension in that race does not get much higher. It is all about the stakes and that small prize has such big stakes. There is a parallel with the Bicycle Thieves and I dare say that this approaches that cinematic icon. This was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar but lost to Life Is Beautiful.