Customer Reviews

The White Balloon [VHS]

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Iranian cinema industry is filled with charming films like this one. It is very subtle and understated... a tale of a little girl who wishes so much for a goldfish she sees when she and her mother are passing through the city together. She is convinced that the goldfish they see in the shop is fatter, more beautiful and superior to the goldfish they already have swimming in the pond in their courtyard at home. She begs her mother for the money to get the goldfish, but her mother denies it. The little girl then enlists her older brother's help to get the money. Eventually she succeeds in getting the money, but this is only the beginning of her adventure. At many times throughout the film, an odyssey through Tehran on Iran's New Year's Day (which I believe falls in March), the little girl and the money part company, and she has to struggle to find it and retrieve it. The story is charming and heartwarming. Iran's film censors are very strict about what they allow, so films like this are the standard fare. The films themselves are actually quite telling about everyday life in modern Iran, and I think these elements are the most telling of all. Unlike in western (particular American) cinema where you are beat over the head with parables and themes and lessons, these Iranian films just present a story simply and let you conclude whatever you like.

Simply put, determined seven-year-old girls are one of the constants of the universe, and little Razieh is an excellent example of this. While not exactly spoiled, she is nonetheless sheltered from some of tense dynamics within her family --- and unfortunately, a stressed out mother and a father prone to violent outbursts also are far too easy for people across the world to relate to.

For Razieh, it is all pretty simple --- the quest for the extra-chubby goldfish, and dealing with the twists and turns of achieving her goal. Every child has been a situation like this, and for those of us who can remember how it felt, this movie is a fascinating and deceptively simple tale.

The world can be a pretty scary place for a seven-year-old, and this movie brings that home quite powerfully. One feels especially the ominous presence of a not particularly benign government. in the form of an intimidating military presence.

The movie's success rests on the ability of the girl playing Razieh to deliver her lines while retaining that natural little girl quality. This she does magnificently. She is irresistably cute (and knows it) but also can be a real pain in the ass when she doesn't get what she wants. She is also overwhelmed by the world outside, but has enough resourcefulness to stick up for herself when she is being dealt with unfairly (as with the snake charmer).

She also conveys the power of loss, and reminds the viewer that just because an adult may regard something as trivial, it is nonetheless very real and very devastating to a child, and that the despair of loss for the child is as real as anything an adult might experience. The moment when Razieh is at the pet shop and realizes that she has lost her bank note --- where she realizes that she is really screwed and also in big big trouble --- is as moving a scene in the cinema as I have seen.

Some viewers may find life as it actually happens to be pretty boring cinema, and I suppose in the wrong hands it could be extremely boring, but not in this case. This has remained one of my favorite foreign films of all times. I look forward to my not-quite one-year-old daughter reaching Razieh's age, so that I can begin to appreciate the similarities. I sure she will drive me crazy just like Razieh would.

This movie, although set in a culture that may be foriegn to many of us, crosses these boundaries. It reminds us that all children have many of the same qualities. They are all innocent and see life different than adults do. The little things are not so little to them. What may be insignificant to adults may mean the world to them. Watching this movie made me stay glued to the set. I couldn't wait to see how the children fared. I was actually finding myself nervous for the little girl, as though I were the child who lost what seemed to her like all the money in the world. I could watch this movie again and again, inspite of the fact that it has a slower pace than most popular movies of today.

As with most Iranian made movies there is a deeper message or lesson you might say to be realized. This movie is no different. It is not an action packed movie that would rumble your house with it's base and keep all the neighbors on their toes. Rather this movie shows the suttle bond between a brother and sister and it's growth through one of their daily hardships. I should add that the director is in no hurry either to show this. A movie with some depth to it needs to be at a so called "slow pace" inorder for the viewer to absorb and comprehend the ideas and thoughts that are being introduced to them.
If you like to watch a movie alone or with a small crowd of patient viewers you will come out of this movie with a big smile on your face and a happier heart :)

I have been a fan of persian films for a long time. Mostly, because I was born in Iran and remember watching films as a young child. I loved this movie because of it's vivid color and poetic dialouge. It's unlike american films because it shows every possiable detail and has a slow pace. It's not a fast pace action triller. But it is a delightful story about a girl and her adventure to buy a big goldfish. You won't find american films that pay this much attention to such a simple topic, but that is what makes Iranian films standout from the rest of the films made around the world.

My young nephew was helping hook up my vcr after a recent move and to test the connections I popped this wonderful little Iranian film into the vcr. It was the most handy tape around. 45 minutes later my nephew was still in front of the television engrossed in this timeless and universal classic. If you have young people in your life and you would like to encourage them to expand their horizons regarding film or want to share other cultures with them, this film is the perfect opportunity to do so. When I first saw it, it sparked so many memories of childhood, when having the perfect goldfish or the hit toy was everything. This simple background leads to a wonderfully uplifting tale and a celebration of a child's imagination and culminates in one of the coolest closing shots in decades. Buy it now!

The way the film goes through the encounters of little "Razieh" reminds us how innocent, pure and clever little children can be. The little girl could not be any cuter and the film makes you feel as if you are living the little girl's life with the feeling you get from her actions and encounters. After watching this film, I realized how great movies are supposed to be made.

I have become quite fond of Iranian films--many of them, like "The White Balloon", are charming and simply told, portraying real life without much of a plot or any special effects. It is interestingly done in real time.

Children seem to be the focus of many of these films, as they are in this one. The little girl was so appealing, despite her whining and pouting, that and I found myself aching for her when she lost her money and was trying to find it.

A good, slow-paced movie...glad I saw it.

Through this curiously simple story, Abbas Kiarostami displays a breathtaking exploration around the social body of the Iranian nation, about a seven years old girl who, in the eve of the New year- 1374 according the Iranian calendar- in her desire to buy a goldfish, loses her money on the way.

Meanwhile, two dervishes, a gentle old lady, a distracted tailor, a talkative soldier, her brother and an afghan refugee will accompany her in order to help and comfort her, around that unpleasant fact. Apparently, it's a comedy, but there is a lot of nestled issues around, becoming a true beautiful story loaded of peerless humanity.

The main highlight is the overwhelming natural performance of this actress Aida Mohammadkhani who really stole the show all the way. After you watch it, you will agree with the fact this movie deserved Camera d' or in Cannes 1995.

It's absolutely incredible how this film has not been translated into DVD format.

The children in this film brought out so much of my emotions. The film doesn't pause, doesn't change pace, doesn't change scenes. It's sequential and rapid uncovering such a sense of urgency. It is a touching story and well played out.