The Kohuts touring Sound of Freedom did not influence the distributor’s decision to bring the film to Finland. The premiere is on November 3.
As a result of all this, the *Sound of Freedom* has ended up as a rallying cry for the US culture wars.
In this story, we tell you what the surprise hit of the year is all about, which will have its Finnish premiere on Friday, November 3.
Billionaires spilling the blood of children
In 2013, he left the security agency and founded Operation Underground Railroad, an association that rescues people who are victims of sex trafficking, especially children. According to its website, O.U.R. has been involved in more than 4,000 rescue operations and more than 6,500 arrests around the world.
The organization has been alleged to have exaggerated and embellished its achievements, many of which are difficult to prove.
In interviews, Ballard has estimated that there are millions of minor victims of human trafficking in the world, as well as clients of human trafficking.
The speeches have been linked in the public debate to the QAnon conspiracy theory about a community of money-rich people whose members extract a super drug called adrenochrome from children’s blood. Adrenochrome is said to keep its users young and beautiful.
Caviezel is best known for his role as Jesus in *Passion of the Christ*. In recent years, he has acted mainly in films based on Christian values. Caviezel is a devout Catholic who believes in sin and opposes abortion.
The main character of the film, Tim Ballard, has also flirted with QAnon theories by talking, among other things, about the claim that the furniture store Wayfair served as a center for human trafficking.
Monteverde, the director of *Sound of Freedom*, has denied the film’s connections to QAnon and was upset by the negative publicity the film received.
A pawn in the culture wars
*Sound of Freedom* is a fairly standard thriller about a man who goes on a crusade to save victims of human trafficking. The film looks and sounds high-quality, and the short action scenes pack a punch.
Christian themes are strongly present in the script. Saving \”God’s children\ Tim Ballard lives a pious life. The side character who worked for the cartel, on the other hand, says that he was saved by God from a dead end. The message is that sin lives in all of us, and with the help of a higher power we can fight against it.
QAnon theories are not referenced in the film at all.
Still, *Sound of Freedom* has ended up as the stage for the American culture wars. Claims have been circulating online that corrupt Hollywood is against the film. The big AMC theater chain has allegedly turned off the air conditioning in its theaters and evacuated the theaters so that customers could not see *Sound of Freedom*.
The cinema chain has dismissed the claims as \”strange\”. They have fueled the situation where *Sound of Freedom* must be \”saved\”.
Screenings of *Sound of Freedom* also end in Finland with a clip of Caviezel, who talks about the adversities the film faced. For example, we were looking for a distributor for five years. Between the lines you can read the disappointment towards Hollywood. Angel Studios, which distributed the film, is based in Utah.
In the clip, the actor encourages viewers to spread the film’s message. Through the QR code displayed on the screen, the viewer can buy an extra ticket \”for someone who would otherwise not be able to see the film\”.
Some of the tickets sold through the campaign have apparently gone unused around the world. As a result, pictures of sold-out shows spread online during the summer, which in fact gaped at their emptiness. There is no information on the number of unused tickets.
Allegations against Tim Ballard
Tim Ballard unexpectedly left Operation Underground Railroad in July after at least six women accused him of manipulation, violence and coercion into sexual acts. The lawsuit tells about the covert operations orchestrated by Ballard, in which he has pressured women into intimate acts.
In the lawsuit, Ballard is described as a power-hungry man who feels he can do anything. He has built an image for himself not only as a hero adventuring in the world, but also as a value conservative defending his homeland, who opposes \”too liberal sex education\” and the \”trans movement\”. Ballard is a devout Mormon.
Ballard has been given a place in American politics, and in the past year he has been a guest on right-wing talk shows. With the accusations, Ballard’s road to politics now looks rockier. Ballard has denied the allegations.
On the other hand, Ballard has a lot of supporters who don’t necessarily care about the accusations. Video clips from the film and Ballard’s interviews receive comments on YouTube praising Ballard as a real-life superhero. The most liked comments are often from representatives of public authorities or victims of human trafficking.
Why is such a disreputable film being distributed?
It would be extraordinary if a film that reached the top ten of the year in the United States was not brought to the big screen in Finland as well. On the other hand, the movie is also exceptional.
– Those are exterior cinematographic things, which I don’t think are related to the movie.
Päiväläinen cannot assess whether the uproar affects the popularity of the film in Finland.
– It’s terribly difficult to say. The movie is quite good. According to that, we were thinking about importing.
Angel Studios would like a sequel to the film, but productions have been widely delayed due to strikes by writers and actors in the United States. It’s also unclear who owns the rights to Ballard’s or Operation Underground Railroad’s stories.
It is almost certain that there will be some kind of continuation. *Sound of Freedom* has made nearly 250 million dollars worldwide.
*Sound of Freedom and QAnon will be discussed in Kulttuuriykösen on Monday. Live broadcast on Yle Areena and Yle Radio 1 from 3:02 p.m. to 3:55 p.m.*