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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
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Color of Paradise, The
Sony Pictures Classics
FILM:
MPAA RATING: PG for thematic elements
Starring
Mohsen Ramezani,
Hossein Mahjoub,
and
Salime Feizi
The story of an active 8 year-old blind boy who shows how he senses the world without sight. The film also follows the progress of the father-son relationship after the death of the mother.
| GENRE(S): |
Drama
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Majid Majidi
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Majid Majidi
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: September 19, 2000
Video: March 13, 2001
Theatrical: March 24, 2000
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
90 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
Iran |
| LANGUAGE(S): |
Farsi (with English subtitles) |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
100
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
While never slow, the film feels quiet and spacious, like a prayer.
100
Philadelphia Inquirer
Carrie Rickey
The film's climax involves a father and son reunion that is tense, tragic and, finally, as transcendent as Mohammad himself.
100
Boston Globe
Jay Carr
The story is spun forth ravishingly, tenderly, and urgently, with a captivating mix of beauty, spare sophistication, and profound humanity.
100
San Francisco Chronicle
Bob Graham
This is a transcendent film, deeply committed and beautifully wrought. It will make anyone who sees it look at the world with new eyes.
93
Mr. Showbiz
F. X. Feeney
It's an exhilarating display of filmic artistry.
90
Time
Richard Corliss
This miniature epic is a film that, like its young hero, will enrich those who peer into its poignant heart.
90
Newsweek
Ann-Rebecca Laschever
A beautifully told story of a child's innocence and faith, filmed with exquisite detail and stunning cinematography
88
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
A family film that shames the facile commercialism of a product like "Pokemon" and its value system based on power and greed.It is made with delicacy and beauty.
88
New York Daily News
Jami Bernard
Another perfect little gem from Iran in which the simplest story unleashes a torrent of emotion.
88
Chicago Tribune
Michael Wilmington
The simplicity and idealism of The Color of Paradise are part of what makes it so attractive to near-jaded palates here. There are no evil characters in the film.
80
Dallas Observer
Jean Oppenheimer
A beautiful film from Iran explores beauty both physical and spiritual.
80
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
A heartbreaker, plain and simple.
80
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Reputed to be sentimental crowd pleaser, for better and for worse.
80
Village Voice
Michael Atkinson
Like a Hollywood dolt, Majidi strives to overwhelm us with emphasis, but it's the reality he was savvy to load his movie with that's touching.
78
Austin Chronicle
Marc Savlov
Less a film than a lyrical, naturalistic tone poem.
75
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Sean Axmaker
It's so beautiful and moving and simple that I'm willing to forgive Majidi his contrivances.
75
Portland Oregonian
Diana Abu-Jaber
Offers a charming reinterpretation of what it means to look for happiness and all the unexpected places that it may be found.
75
New York Post
Jonathan Foreman
Doesn't have the emotional heft of his "Children of Paradise," but it's still moving.
75
USA Today
Staff [Not Credited]
Seductively pastoral but also a bit slight, the movie saves its best scene for the very end.
70
Film.com
Henry Cabot Beck
Westerners may find the religious aspects wearying and a little fantastic. The Color of Paradise is both parable and fable, a retelling of Isaac and Abraham.
70
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Thomas
As worthy and moving as The Color of Paradise is, it is not entirely free of the manipulative, the arbitrary and the downright punitive.
70
The New York Times
Dana Stevens
Leans a bit too much toward the lachrymose and has a wrong-note final image.
70
TV Guide
Ken Fox
The surprisingly tragic climax may make it rough going for kids too young to grasp the film's comforting message.
70
LA Weekly
Hazel-Dawn Dumpert
The performances are revelatory.
50
Christian Science Monitor
David Sterritt
Although it has a good heart and a warm spirit, this prettily filmed drama is more sentimental and manipulative than earlier Iranian films on youth-related subjects.
 The average user rating for this movie is 10.0 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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