What can I say about "The Color of Paradise" ! I could not take my eyes away from the film for a single second. I was infatuated, cherished to see a film like this. I was touched thoroughly. I felt extremely sad at the end. Acting, camera-work, dialog, direction, music, everything, everything is remarkable and exceptional. It doesn't matter how many time you watch this film, it will not be boring ever. Rather, it will revive you.I thought blind people are like dead people. They can not see the graceful nature, immensity of the world, thousands of color around, they can not differentiate light and dark, they always live in darkness. But, I did not aware of how strongly they feel everything and how colorful their mind can be. Now I see a lot of blind people with eyes, and how blind people see without eyes.

I have been watching a lot of Iranian films lately and the standard is uniformly high, and The Color of Paradise is yet another really good film to add to the list. There is some beautiful cinematography, some of it so simplistic but all the more beautiful for that reason. The acting from the young blind boy is fantastic, and the film has plenty of sad, emotional scenes which will have your eyes tearing up.On the down side, there is not really much of a story, this doesn't harm the film but equally does not do it any favours either. I also found that there is a bit too much tragedy and sadness in the film, and it cast a bit too much of a shadow over the beautiful scenery and nature shots.I've seen that a lot of people have claimed this film is a masterpiece and I can't help wondering if they have little or no experience of Iranian cinema, and so watched this film not knowing what to expect and found a beautiful film, then overreacted slightly with their reviews. It is well worth watching in my opinion, but it is not Majidi's finest work (that honour goes to The Willow Tree)and is not really any better than his other films.

I feel quite happy joining the teary-eyed crowd of viewers from New York to Bangladesh who were emotionally overwhelmed by "Rang-e khoda". To try and turn a theme which is in itself heartbreaking into a strong and worthy piece of art is of course a risky business. Although I find other Iranian directors (let's say Mehrjui, Kiarostami, Panahi, Ghobadi) more interesting, I believe that Majidi is a gifted artist who perfectly knows how to make the most out of balancing on the brink of mawkish sentiment/pathos. His movies - i.e. the four I have seen - evidently look up to Italian neo-realism (there are even concrete points of contact between "Rang-e khoda" and "Ladri di biciclette", among others), oscillating between a sociological/ethnographic study, sociocritical statement, tearjerking melodrama, religious/spiritual fable and pure fairy-tale. For some (re)viewers, such an amalgam may be too much to bear (not only the otherwise outstanding sequence when Mohammad rescues a baby bird raises doubts about its credibility), but thanks to the director's cinematic treatment it offers moments where it reaches almost Chaplinesque quality.I don't feel an urge to comment on "Rang-e khoda"'s beautiful cinematography, flawless acting, rich soundscape, or sometimes spoonfeeding symbolism - others have done it before, and better. My last small remark concerns the annoying sound that structures the second half of the movie like an ominous refrain. One reviewer suggests it's wolves ; to me, it seems rather like a cry of some bird (a wild turkey, perhaps ??) regarded by the locals as a sign of ill luck.As to the quality of the Sony's disc, it's way better than the British and German ones (both with AR cut to 4:3 !).

When we talk about Majid Majidi, some beautiful, life varying and thought provoking movies come into the mind like Children of Heaven (1997), Baran (2001), The Song of Sparrows (2008) & The Willow Tree.I think he is one of the best directors, who have an eminent sense of cinema making, symbolism, metaphors, various shades of life and social dramatic requirement. "The Color of Paradise" is one of the best Iranian Films ever made; He demonstrates "slice of life" in a true manner which we conform every day. Many of us have a different picture of Iran in our minds because of the propaganda and less known demographics as well lifestyle.Mohammad (Mohsen Ramezani) is a blind 8-year-old boy & attends a school for the blind in Tehran. The school's summer s holidays are up and students are going home to their parents. Hashem (Hossein Mahjub), Mohammad's father, is unwilling to take him to home and the father has some alternate plan for himself.Even though the lead character is visually impaired but we see everything through his eyes and feel the pain he has. His pleasure to meet his granny and sister is heart touching.The acting is unblemished and dialogues are simply wonderful, the basic setting of the story requires a lot to explore itself and it has been done immaculately, leaving the clichés behind.The depiction of moderation and gluttony is at its uttermost level. A father who thinks that his blind son is an extra affliction to the shoulders, his argument with granny shows that he is becoming vulnerable and the repentance is going to come eventually.The cinematography is breathtaking with lush farms of Wheat, beautiful flowers; green rural Iran has been captured marvelously which gives tranquility to the eyes of the viewer. Every frame of the movie is crafted wonderfully which directly relates with any human being with different voices of nature and creatures. The symbolism used in this movie is impeccable as Mohammad puts in the infant bird to its nest, granny puts the dying fish to water, voices of creatures, negligence of turtle by the father etc, each symbol represents life and it actions.A heartrending and pleasant voyage, a must see movie.My vote 9/10