On the eve of the Iranian New Year a young soldier is assigned to accompany a delinquent boy being sent to a juvenile detention center in Tehran. Angry that the assignment disrupts his holiday leave plans, the man shows scant pity for the child handcuffed to his side. Part way through the journey the soldier leads them on a detour to his village in northern Iran, where his family welcomes them with joy. Forced to pretend that the boy is his commander's son rather than a prisoner, the soldier endures the sight of the delinquent treated as an honored guest. The child blooms under kind treatment, and the soldier too begins to see him differently. Mir-Karimi's film is a simple story without a simple resolution, for his triumph lies entirely in bringing each character to the moment of recognizing the humanity of the other. Starkly contrasting landscapes-desert flatlands and intensely green mountainsides-are utilized effectively and often symbolically.-Barbara Scharres, The Film Center, Chicago