Film Review: "Sound of Freedom" (2023).

"Based On The Incredible True Story." This is Sound of Freedom. This action film directed by Alejandro Monteverde, and written by Monteverde and Rod Barr. Based on the incredible true story, the film shines a light on even the darkest of places. After rescuing a young boy from ruthless child traffickers, a federal agent learns the boy's sister is still captive and decides to embark on a dangerous mission to save her. With time running out, he quits his job and journeys deep into the Colombian jungle, putting his life on the line to free her from a fate worse than death.

The film was inspired by the work of Tim Ballard, the founder of Operation Underground Railroad, or O.U.R., an anti-trafficking non-profit. In 2015, development on the film began. Against the wishes of the producers, Ballard had personally requested that Jim Caviezel portray him. By the Summer of 2018, Caviezel, Mira Sorvino, Bill Camp, Eduardo Verástegui, Javier Godino, José Zúñiga, Kurt Fuller, Gary Basaraba, Gerardo Taracena, Scott Haze, and Gustavo Sánchez Parra were cast. At the same time, with a budget of $14.5 million, principal photography commenced and took place throughout Colombia and in Calexico, California. Once completed, a distribution deal was made with the Latin American subsidiary of 20th Century Fox. However, when the studio was purchased by the Walt Disney Company, the film was shelved. Subsequently, the filmmakers bought the distribution rights back from the studio. But it would take years to release as the filmmakers were turned down by various distributing companies as they didn't want the film associated with their output. Ultimately, producer Eduardo Verástegui approached Angel Studios with the release rights. Angel presented the film to an online group of one-hundred-thousand investors in its past projects called the Angel Guild, which gave it a "yes" vote within days. In 2023, Angel Studios had acquired the worldwide distribution rights, with a planned release during the second half of 2023. In May of the same year, it received a July 4, 2023 release date. Angel used equity crowdfunding to raise the funds needed to distribute and market the film. Seven thousand people invested, allowing Angel to meet its $5 million goal in two weeks. They also encouraged patrons to "pay it forward" to allow people who might not otherwise see the film to watch it in theaters for free. Mel Gibson, Dana White, Elon Musk, Ben Shapiro, Jewel, the Family Research Council, and Goya Foods all endorsed this film. The film was projected to gross $11–15 million over its first week of release, with some estimates reaching $20 million. However, the film had outgrossed its budget in two days. In late July, Angel Studios confirmed that the film would be released in twenty-three international markets throughout 2023.

Caviezel is a one-man scourge of child predators in this well-meaning thriller that doesn’t entirely deserve to be written off as culture-war propaganda.

Overall this is neither a great, nor terrible, release of a film that has made itself an enormous amount of money and earned its place among our generation's other semi-superheroic thrillers.

Simon says Sound of Freedom receives: