This is the story of 12-year-old Ali and his three friends. Together they work hard to survive and support their families, doing small jobs in a garage and committing petty crimes to make fast money. In a turn of events that seems miraculous, Ali is entrusted to find a hidden treasure underground. He recruits his gang, but first, to gain access to the tunnel, the children must enroll at the Sun School, a charitable institution that tries to educate street kids and child labor... (Full plot summary below)
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This is the story of 12-year-old Ali and his three friends. Together they work hard to survive and support their families, doing small jobs in a garage and committing petty crimes to make fast money. In a turn of events that seems miraculous, Ali is entrusted to find a hidden treasure underground. He recruits his gang, but first, to gain access to the tunnel, the children must enroll at the Sun School, a charitable institution that tries to educate street kids and child laborers, close to where the treasure is located.
Leave your thoughts about Sun Children.
| The A.V. ClubRoxana HadadiA tidal wave of compassion and empathy that crests into rage and sorrow—all of it provoked by the plight of Iran’s child laborers. |
| The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Amil NiaziDespite the heavy material, the film manages to imbue the story with heart and even breakthrough moments of joy. |
| The GuardianXan BrooksEnergetic and heartfelt, tipping towards tragedy, Sun Children crawls through the mud and emerges all the stronger. The quest is a red herring; the real treasure is the film. |
| The Hollywood ReporterDeborah YoungThough Sun Children lacks the visual lushness and poetry that made Children of Heaven so seductive, its condemnation of child labor and the inaccessibility of basic education to the poor comes across with great force. |
| Los Angeles TimesCarlos AguilarThough affecting and humbly breathtaking, Sun Children doesn’t bargain in condescending pity. |
| Austin ChronicleJenny NulfMaijidi’s latest was Iran’s submission for the most recent Oscars, a film that’s gentle, packed with all the familiar beats you find in these City of God-like child POV gritty fairy tales. |
| Screen DailyLee MarshallIts old-school charm shades into tired plotting more than once, and the moral lesson concealed in the film’s central story about a gang of tykes’ search for buried treasure can feel a little preachy. |
| VarietyPeter DebrugeIf one intention of Sun Children is to remind that all kids are created equal, deserving of education and encouragement, Majidi’s young ensemble makes the case loud and clear. |
| Slant MagazineWes GreeneThe film tends toward the dramatically monotonous, but its unwavering sense of purpose ensures that it’s also compellingly human. |
| The New York TimesDevika GirishMajid Majidi’s latest feature doesn’t lack in style or charm, using a child’s perspective — a staple in Iranian cinema — to locate beauty and hope in a cynical world. As is often the case with the director’s work, however, precious visuals come at the cost of narrative complexity. |
