“Children of Heaven” Movie Analysis

“Children of Heaven” Movie Analysis

“Children of Heaven” is a movie about the life of the low-income families. The little brother Ali and his sister Zara are the main characters in the movie. The living is such a low-income family teaches Ali and Zara a lot of moral values (Snyder, 2010). The loss of Zara’s shoes, the situation, and the place they live in and the participation of Ali in the running marathon are all symbols of how much the kid learn throughout their lives and how much they value the little things they have.

The movie takes place in Tehran, people here are poor. However, living such a simple life and having just enough to symbolize the closeness of the family and neighbors, and the individuals in the town at a whole. All the people in this neighborhood are very poor, and they struggle to live, but they also learn a lot this way (Snyder, 2010). They help each other a lot; children do work around the house, and the neighbors help each other with small things that mean a lot to them, like a handful of nuts. The man that works at the grocery store let people take food and pay him back later when they can. Smart things are imperative for the individuals in this neighborhood, and this is why they value life so much. The little children Ali and Zara feel privileged to be able to go to school and study (Cardullo, 2004). They don’t take that for granted like kids here in the USA and other modern countries.

The love that the little brother and sister have for each other is expressed with the disappearance of Zara’s shoes. The shoes are a symbol of the importance of small things in life. When Ali loses his sister’s shoes, he doesn’t want to tell his parents because he knows they don’t have money to buy Zara new shoes. He is very young, but he doesn’t want to worry his parents, and he confronts the problem by himself. He knows that without her shoes Zara can’t go to school, and he worries a lot about that. It happens that the boy and the girl start sharing one pair of shoes and wait for each other so that both of them can go to school on time. They don’t want to give parents with this problem because they know they are poor and cannot afford another pair of shoes. Ali and Zara love each other so much and even that the little girl is mad she never tells on his brother. The kids ignore the injustice in life, and they still have fun with each other when together they wash the only pair of shoes they have (Cardullo, 2004). Zara even wakes up in the middle of the night because it is raining and she is worried that the shoes are going to get rained on, and they won’t be able to go to school the other day. It is amazing how these kids are young but very vibrant, and they value things in life so much, and every little thing that they have is so important.

The story becomes even more interesting when after running all day to give the shoes to his sister, Ali decides to participate in a running marathon. The scene of the running marathon in the movie is another symbol of the love and care that these poor people have for each other. They have many different values when compared to the other people in excellent places. The only reason why he wants to be a part of it is that he sees that the second price is a pair of new sneakers. He seeks to win the sneakers so bad. However, he doesn’t want them for himself lf he wants to give new shoes to his little sister Zara.

In life, people are taught to be the best in everything. People learn that they have to give everything they can so they can always be first, people work so hard only so others can see that they are the best. Ali doesn’t want to win the run; he doesn’t care that he is not going to be first he just wants to win the sneakers for his sister (Snyder, 2010). This is more important for him than winning the first prize. Ali just wants his sister to be happy and to have her shoes. At the end of the running marathon, Ali asks if he finished second.

Ali is very disappointed when he realizes that he won the first place, everybody is happy and proud of him they call him the champion and want to take pictures with him. However he doesn’t care he is wretched, all he thinks about is that back in his mind he failed because he didn’t win the shoes for Zara (Cardullo,2004). He doesn’t want her to be mad at him and disappointed. “Children of Heaven” is an inspirational and moral movie that shows us different types of life that people have. Struggling and having only little things gives these people moral lessons and values that people living in cool places don’t have. The life that Zara and Ali have to live shows them how to love each other and their family, to help each other with everything and not to take anything for granted.

 Reference

Cardullo, B. (2004). In search of cinema: writings on international film art. McGill-Queen’s Press-MQUP.

Snyder, C. R., Lopez, S. J., & Pedrotti, J. T. (2010). Positive psychology: The scientific and practical explorations of human strengths. Sage Publications.