Deeper and richer in humanity than all but a handful of the American films released this year.
90
Film.comPeter Brunette
Film.comPeter Brunette
It simultaneously wows you with the stark beauty of its images, a beauty that leads to another, related kind of truth that is equally crucial. It's not to be missed.
Ghobadi works squarely in the neorealist tradition of countrymen like former mentor Abbas Kiarostami, using nonprofessional actors and documentary technique to tell small, spare stories of the human condition through the eyes of children.
63
San Francisco ExaminerWesley Morris
San Francisco ExaminerWesley Morris
The welcome hints at emotional excess are compromised by the blunt force of the movie's political point-making.
63
New York PostJonathan Foreman
New York PostJonathan Foreman
Ghobadi (himself an Iranian Kurd) takes some gorgeous shots against the snow, but his storytelling is uneven and often slow.