The Lost Shoes

Children of Heaven, a film by Majid Majidi

Children of Heaven is a beautiful movie based in Iran and subtly shows the silver lining in tough times. To put it simply, this movie is about a boy, Ali, who loses his sister’s shoes on the way home from the cobbler’s. He is afraid to tell his father for fear of getting beaten up, so he decides to share his sneakers with his sister until he can find her lost ones. On the other hand, his sister Zahra is an innocent girl looking forward to her repaired shoes. 

When she learns that her brother has lost them, her major concern is what she will wear to school the next day. They work out a solution where Zahra will wear Ali’s sneakers to school every morning, and then run home so that Ali can put them on for his school in the afternoon. The children feverishly write notes to each other, right under their parents’ noses. 

This scene instils a warm feeling in viewers, since exchanging notes is one of the signature things everyone has done in childhood. Thus, this scene leaves me smiling. 

The children barely manage to make this plan a success since Zahra cannot always run fast enough, and Ali, who is a good student, starts getting in trouble for being late to class. There are quite a few scenes that instigate stronger emotions throughout the movie. 

One day, while on her way back from school, Zahra is running as fast as she can to reach her brother. The viewers are already nervous and rooting for her. But one of her shoes suddenly falls into the gutter, and then there is a long shot of her trying to catch it as it flows away further and further. Every time she would get close to retrieving the shoe, she’d miss it, and I’d escape even faster. 

Watching this movie was not just for entertainment. I felt like a kid again, reliving all those anxious and joyful moments. The scene that most strongly made me feel the heartbreak everyone has thought at some point as a kid was when Zahra saw her lost shoes on the ragpicker’s daughter’s feet. That situation is scarier and more absorbing for kids than any other emotion at that stage. 

This film by Majid Majidi features another incredible scene in which Ali and his father bicycle through the almost medieval streets and alleys of the old town to the high-rises and luxury homes where the rich live, to offer them gardening services. The father gets intimidated by the challenge of speaking into the intercoms at the gates of the wealthy people’s houses. It is precisely then that his son jumps in and saves them by talking smoothly and even getting them a customer in the process. 

There is also a footrace for the poor children of the quarter. The winner gets two weeks in a summer camp and other prizes. Ali doesn’t care about anything the moment he sees the third-place prize. It is a new pair of sneakers, which he can give to his sister.

This beautiful feature film is about a home without unhappiness, about a brother and sister who love one another rather than fight over situations, and about a story any child can identify with. In this film, I have found a sweetness and innocence that shames the land of Mutant Turtles, Power Rangers and violent video games. 

In fact, even though the film looks at everything through the innocent eyes of children, Majid Majidi is able to provide a nuanced perspective on the Iranian landscape.

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