If this had been a Persian film, the boy would have lost his violin and the father would have sacrificed everything he had, traveling miles on foot and selling his most prized possession to buy it back, only to drop it under the wheels of a moving bus while bringing it to the boy. At least once he would walk past a blue pond of orange fish.
If this had been an American film, the boy would have gone to the international competition and, in the middle of his difficult solo, the father would have appeared in the audience, inspiring the boy to even greater heights of artistry and winning both acclaim and his father's love.
If this had been a French film the plot would have been exactly the same, but the film would have been in black and white and there would have been at least one graphic sex scene involving the 13-year-old boy.
If this had been an Italian film, the boy would have lost his violin the minute they got to the city, they would have lost all the money they'd brought, everyone they met would try to cheat them or at least yell at them, and the father would be arrested at the end of the film. And it would be hailed as a masterpiece and a brilliant insight on the human condition.
I highly recommend it. Really.