Sound of Freedom: How Did the Film on Child Trafficking Ignite Political Division in America?

While a fierce battle for supremacy in the global cinema empire, Hollywood, played out between two of the biggest summer blockbusters, Barbie and Oppenheimer, in terms of production and cost, another film with a modest budget was making its mark in cinema halls, sparking political controversy.

The film in question is Sound of Freedom, which began screening in the United States in early July 2023 and was released worldwide on August 17, 2023. It quickly became a subject of political debate due to its immense popularity.

Described by Time on August 29, 2023, as the “surprise box office hit of the summer,” the film grossed over $180 million in the United States alone within just two months, surpassing blockbuster productions like Mission: Impossible and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

Sound of Freedom addresses the issue of child trafficking between North and Latin America, where children are exploited by sex cartels and subjected to human trafficking.

It also fueled the popularity of conspiracy theories about these cartels attempting to silence it, leading to political division.

 

Film Significance

Sound of Freedom is an American drama and biographical film directed by Alejandro Monteverde, starring Jim Caviezel, Mira Sorvino, and Bill Camp. In the film, Caviezel portrays the character of Timothy Ballard, a human trafficking abolitionist, and tells the story of his efforts to rescue children from human traffickers.

The film offers a poignant and painful portrayal of how children are targeted and endangered by these dark trafficking operations.

The film narrates the story of Timothy Ballard, a former federal agent who resigned from his position in Homeland Security Investigations to rescue young children from a sex trafficking cartel in Colombia.

The film sheds light on child trafficking in Latin American countries, particularly Mexico. It depicts the rescue operation, illustrating how Timothy Ballard ventured into Colombia to save 127 children from human trafficking syndicates.

It unveils the dark and mysterious side of social media and the enchanting world of celebrities and the wealthy, revealing how they pose a real threat to children, exposing them to genuine danger.

Critics argue that the film’s significance lies in its call for deep reflection and action.

It conveys a clear message that raising and protecting our children must be our top priority, and we must be prepared to confront these risks with strength and determination.

They emphasize that Sound of Freedom is not just an entertainment film but a journey into an exhausting reality that demands confrontation. It highlights real dangers that lurk around our children due to the influence of social media, the allure of Hollywood, and the power of the wealthy.

The film portrays how innocents can be targeted through distorted and twisted promotional campaigns, luring them into dark realms that involve human trafficking.

 

Political Division

According to the Daily Mail, in September 2023, the low-budget independent film caused significant tensions and political division.

While some questioned the film’s realism, others criticized it due to its potential association with conspiracy theories promoted by the far-right loyal to former President Donald Trump.

This film triggered a significant political divide, and American news reports stated that it faced a series of conspiracies for not promoting it due to its child trafficking storyline.

The controversy surrounding the film led to claims that it was being suppressed in the United States, resulting in unexpected consequences as it increased its popularity.

In a video message, the actor and producer, Jim Caviezel, acknowledged that this long-awaited film had faced every obstacle imaginable but didn’t delve into details.

Caviezel, speaking to the New York Post on July 12, 2023, wondered why all this criticism over the film.

At the same time, he sees it as a blessing in disguise. “They are doing us a favor, the more they attack the movie, people show up,” he said.

He emphasized that the real heroes of the film are the young girl and her brother, stating that these children can be stronger than cartel leaders, presidents, members of Congress, or even tech billionaires.

Although the film does not take a direct political stance or promote conservative American groups and focuses on the idea of rescuing children from a dark world luring them through social media, the allure of Hollywood, and more, politicians like Trump sought to defend it, seemingly as an electoral attempt to appear as a protector of family values and virtue.

Trump hosted a screening of the film at his private club in New Jersey in July 2023 and congratulated the actor on the film’s success. Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Tim Scott, who praised the film, also attended the event.

Actors such as Mel Gibson joined the defense of the film and appeared in a dedicated promotional video, according to Daily Mail, on September 1, 2023.

Gibson, in a video statement, said, “One of the most disturbing problems in our world today is human trafficking. And particularly the trafficking of children. Our future is our children.”

 

Conspiracy Theories

The film was engulfed in controversy across American newspapers and media outlets and faced accusations from critics sympathetic to child trafficking cartels. It also drew criticism for its alleged exaggerations and perceived alignment with the evangelical conservative Trump movement.

Critics argued that the film sensationalized child exploitation and played a role in promoting right-wing conspiracy theories associated with the QAnon movement.

The “QAnon” conspiracy theory emerged in 2017 and was embraced by the far-right extremist movement in the United States. It propagates bizarre claims and allegations, including the assertion that the Democratic Party (President Joe Biden’s party) is running a child sex trafficking ring through a pizza parlor!

They also promote a theory that Trump is leading the battle against a pedophile cabal, which is why he and his supporters endorsed and celebrated the film.

The film’s distributor, Angel Studios, has denied that Sound of Freedom is political or connected to QAnon. “Anybody who watches this film knows that this film is not about conspiracy theories,” Angel CEO Neal Harmon said in an interview. “It’s not about politics.”

However, the film’s strong support from the far-right evangelical Christians led to it being classified as a “MAGA-friendly” production and associated with the conspiracy embraced by both conservatives and extreme right-wing conspiracy theorists.

During Trump’s presidency, the world became familiar with his campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again,” abbreviated as “MAGA,” which is the same slogan used by former President Ronald Reagan in his 1980 campaign.

The Atlantic magazine notes that during Trump’s four years in office, he played two roles.

First, he was the President, and second, he served as a convergence point for an alliance of technocrats and web-savvy conspiracy theorists, white supremacists who are hostile to peaceful transitions in any form.

A prominent example of this was when his extremist supporters stormed the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.

According to Time magazine, on August 29, 2023, the film’s star and producer, Jim Caviezel, known for his portrayal of Jesus in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, delivered speeches and interviews promoting a baseless conspiracy theory.

This theory alleges that a mysterious international cabal of prominent Democratic politicians and liberal elites kidnaps children and forces them into sexual exploitation. However, the film itself does not explicitly present any conspiracy theories.

Caviezel also promotes in his press conferences the unfounded claim that child trafficking aims to extract a chemical called “adrenochrome” from their blood for its alleged rejuvenating and youth-enhancing properties, as reported by The Guardian on August 30, 2023.

Journalists Anna Merlan and Tim Marchman accused Ballard and his organization, Operation Underground Railroad (OUR), of promoting a misleading form of myth-building and a series of exaggerations in their story.

They alleged that Ballard and his organization engaged in sabotage missions — partly executed by real estate agents and high-level donors — that appeared primarily designed to produce exciting video footage to promote his organization and, subsequently, the film Sound of Freedom.

The New York Times reported that some of the film’s promoters suggest that an elite group of Satan-worshiping pedophiles runs a sex-trafficking ring and is attempting to control U.S. politics and media.