Sound of Freedom (2023) Review!!

Synopsis – The incredible true story of a former government agent turned vigilante who embarks on a dangerous mission to rescue hundreds of children from traffickers.

My Take – Among all the evils and horrors that continue to persistently exist in our world, the ugly truth of child sex trafficking has to be beyond a doubt the worst of the lot. A nightmarish scenario for every parent. A particular reason for which I kept putting off from checking out this hard to watch thriller that is loosely based on the true story of Tim Ballard as he tries to rescue abducted children from sex traffickers.

And though the film provides a powerful message and gained significant reputation for earning almost ten times its budget at the box office, a miracle considering it was made over five years ago and wasn’t destined for theatrical release at all, this Alejandro Monteverde directorial unfortunately also found itself marred with controversy.

With its lead star Jim Caviezel pushing the film firmly in that direction, some critics and anti-trafficking experts have opined that the film embellishes the reality of child exploitation and stokes QAnon conspiracy theories. It even got championed by Donald Trump of all people. Add to that its unconventional marketing strategy of pay-it-forward sales adopted by its distributor Angel Studios that apparently led to almost empty sold out shows with unused tickets and unoccupied seats.

Obviously I have no way of knowing how accurate any of it is, or even how reliable a picture it paints of the real-life Tim Ballard. Hence, my opinion is solely based on the dramatic feature co-written by Rod Barr and Alejandro Monteverde, and I must say the emotionally wrenching material is not for the faint of heart. And coupled with stirring performances, it does leave a significant impact.

Though, the film’s pacing is all over the place and there are some scenes that just feel unnecessary, for the most part it is a decently effective rescue thriller, which delves into human darkness, portraying a timeless struggle against evil and illustrates the tough nature of this fight. Highlighting and underscoring a sickening global problem that hasn’t gotten very much attention from filmmakers on a larger scale.

The story follows Tim Ballard (Jim Caviezel), a Special Agent with the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), who has spent twelve years arresting people who possess and distribute child pornography. But after participating in hundreds of successful raids, Ballard is faced with the reality that arresting pedophiles, as important as it is, does nothing to rescue the children being kidnapped, sold, and abused.

But when one of his investigations leads to the rescue of the eight year old Miguel (Lucas Avila), who along with his twelve year old sister, Rocio (Cristal Aparicio), was kidnapped from a Honduras hotel room, after being lured by the local beauty queen Giselle (Yessica Borroto), who promised their father Roberto (José Zúñiga) entertainment fame, Ballard’s desire to rescue more increases, particularly Rocio.

Backed by his department head (Kurt Fuller) and emotionally supported by his wife Katherine (Mira Sorvino), Ballard heads to Cartagena in Colombia, and joins Vampiro (Bill Camp), a boozy cigar-smoking expat, and an empathetic local cop Jorge (Javier Godino) to set up a dangerous sting which would allow them to procure many more children from Giselle and her gang.

Indeed, this one is a tough one to watch. It wasn’t graphic, but to see, to an extent, what Tim Ballard saw, really hits. Without being crass or adopting sensationalism, it works its compelling and gut-wrenching narrative. Utilizing pathos to get under our skins.

Rather than merely addressing the problem of sex slavery in general, the film focuses its attention on the abduction and attempted rescue of two victims in particular, the brother and sister we see kidnapped at the start of the film. Following the plight of a few specific children moves us past a vague awareness of sex trafficking and into some flesh-and-blood experiences which arrest our sympathies.

The fact that this film decides to spotlight such a severe world problem, and does it in fairly gripping fashion, gets itself a major pass. Though the film-making is never exactly spectacular, director Alejandro Monteverde’s sense of framing is pretty damn good, especially in the film’s more mournful first half. The film works best in its subtle, visual moments. A close-up of a vulnerable child builds more empathy and emotional engagement than dialogue that verbally states the theme more than once.

Sure, the third act the film threatens to overstay its welcome, which could have benefited from having had 10-15 minutes’ worth of scenes snipped out to make for a tighter, more concise film, and its resolution risks the aura of fantasy, but these critiques are minor compared to the success of the story as a whole.

Performance wise, the highly underrated Jim Caviezel is incredible and brings the intensity, mystery and depth to sell his role. Bill Camp steals almost every scene he’s in, and Mira Sorvino is decent in her small role. Eduardo Verastegui, Javier Godino, Kurt Fuller, José Zúñiga and Yessica Borroto are decent in supporting roles.

However, the biggest stars of the feature are child actors Lucas Avila and Cristal Aparicio who are astonishing throughout and sell their turmoil with skill beyond their years. On the whole, ‘Sound of Freedom’ is a decently effective rescue thriller that succeeds in being engaging, heartbreaking and calling to action.