Controversial surprise hit in the US: This movie is more successful than the new “Indiana Jones”

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The budget is small, but the success is great. “Sound of Freedom” (in German: “Sound of Freedom”) is causing a stir in the US. No wonder: the film has already sold more tickets than the latest Indiana Jones coup starring Harrison Ford (81).

The fifth part of the series should be Disney’s blockbuster of the summer. Instead, all of Hollywood is talking about the “Sound of Freedom” movie.

Also because the content is dark and totally unsuitable for the masses unlike the heroic story of Indiana Jones. It’s about child prostitution. Jim Caviezel (54), American actor with ancestry from Graubünden, plays Tim Ballard, who quits his job as an agent with the US government to save kidnapped children from sexual abuse.

The special thing: the film is partly based on true events. Tim Ballard is real. According to his own statements, he worked as an agent for the US government for more than ten years, uncovering cases of child trafficking and pedophilia. Among other things, he was there when 50 children were rescued from the clutches of human traffickers in Colombia.

He then resigned in 2013 to track down pedophiles around the world. He founded the organization “Operation Underground Railroad”. There was already great interest in his work at the time and film producer Eduardo Verástegui (49) knew it had to be shown on the silver screen. “In the movie, my character is much more ruthless than I am. But it’s based on the truth,” Ballard told the New York Post. Adding, “The kids are real, what happened to them is real. All the bad guys and good guys are real.”

Proximity to the far-right conspiracy group QAnon?

The alleged authenticity should be the secret of success. The film grossed $45 million in its first few days. This makes it one of the top 25 highest-grossing films of 2023, with a budget of just $14.5 million. By comparison, “Indiana Jones” had a budget of over $290 million and played in more theaters. Nevertheless, it was only enough for 32 million in US revenue. A disappointment.

As successful as the film is, it is controversial. He is accused of being close to the far-right conspiracy group QAnon. The group firmly believes that the rich and powerful run a secret pedophile ring. The elites would not only sexually abuse the children, but also use the blood of the abducted minors to keep themselves young.

Film for «Fathers with fantasies»

The premise of the movement was an anonymous internet post in 2017, which dealt with allegedly bizarre child rapist rituals and political conspiracies. The British newspaper “Guardian” therefore called “Sound of Freedom” a “QAnon thriller”. The American magazine “Rolling Stone” calls it a “superhero movie for dads with fantasies”.

In addition, Ballard allegedly claimed that 10,000 abducted children are smuggled into the country and abused each year in the United States alone. There is no evidence for this. And, according to the Washington Post, the Utah prosecutor was investigating Ballard’s “Operation Underground Railroad.” Including fraud. So far, that has not detracted from the success of the film.

Source: Blick