No one probably saw this coming in advance: With sales of $183 million in the US alone (currently at $230 million worldwide)Sound of freedom“One of the ten most successful films of the year in North America. At the American box office he even managed to beat blockbusters such as “Fast & Furious 10”, “Mission: Impossible 7” and “Indiana Jones 5”.
This was partly due to a special measure by the distributor to get people to buy more tickets for the film than they actually needed. But even without this approach, the production of the drama, which cost only $14.5 million, would have been a sensational success. Curiosity may also have been sparked a bit by the controversies surrounding the work…
‘Sound Of Freedom’: One of the most talked about films of 2023
‘Sound of Freedom’ centers on the true story of Homeland Security agent Tim Ballard (played in the film by ‘The Passion of the Christ’ star Jim Caviezel), who fights child and human trafficking on behalf of the government. But the feeling that he can’t really get to grips with the problem at work eventually leads Ballard to quit his job and single-handedly release children into crime hotspots…
The fact that ‘Sound Of Freedom’ has been so hotly debated for months has to do with the fact that the real Tim Ballard has been criticized for a long time. and it is sometimes doubted how true the stories of his actions actually are, not to mention the fact that their cinematic treatment already dramaturgically condenses the alleged events.
However, what caused even more of a stir was the drama being labeled a right-wing QAnon thriller – but not through what was shown in the film itself, but through interview statements from the real Ballard and his actor Jim Caviezel, who fueled similar conspiracy theories in conversations. Director Alejandro Monteverde still deeply regrets this and has distanced himself from such instrumentalization.
We will soon find out in this country how much of this criticism the film itself actually lets through and whether Monteverde also delivers an immersive cinema experience in which you can largely ignore all discussions about it: “Sound Of Freedom” will hit German cinemas on November 8, 2023.