Over the weekend, I decided to check out the new faith-based thriller, Sound of Freedom, starring Jim Caviezel. My overall impressions were that it was a solid little thriller tackling a very serious issue: Child sex trafficking. I reviewed the film on Sunday, so you can check it out. I stand by my review of the film 100 percent. However: when it comes to movies that deal with human trafficking, honesty is always the best policy. The problem with Sound of Freedom isn’t necessarily the film itself, but the people that inspired it, namely Tim Ballard and his organization, Operation Underground Railroad(O.U.R.). But first, let me tackle an issue that bothered me watching the movie, and it takes place during the credits. There’s a message from actor Jim Caviezel thanking people for getting out and seeing the movie. Harmless, right? Not necessarily, but I’m not done. He goes on to encourage other people to see the movie either via Angel Studios’ Pay It Forward program or buy tickets to see it so the audience feels that they can help end the trafficking of children. Here’s the problem: If you want to thank your audience, you do it before the movie starts, but you also don’t encourage your audience to buy more tickets when they’re already in the theater. It smells of desperation. Secondly, by doing that, you are essentially undercutting the message the movie’s trying to convey. Instead of encouraging people to research what they can do to help, Mr. Caviezel asks for more money. Not directly mind you, but that’s what he’s implying. You don’t want the last image your audience sees of the movie, an actor essentially begging for money.
That brings me to Tim Ballard, a former Homeland Security agent who founded O.U.R. On the surface, what he’s advocating is something that everybody should be talking about: Human trafficking. Great. That’s something that everyone can get behind, regardless of your politics. The problem with Mr. Ballard is that in the decade since he founded his organization, things have come to light about how he runs his organization and how they conduct “stings” to save children. A lot of red flags were raised by various sources including Vice and American Crime Journal. Essentially, he got caught in multiple falsehoods and exaggerations about the operations he’s conducted. Multiple law enforcement agencies knew about these guys, and warned that O.U.R could do more harm than good with victims. Since the release of the film, there’s been a lot of articles coming out about Ballard and his organization. For instance, we know that he has never disclosed what happens to the money that O.U.R gets from conservative and religious donors. The lack of transparancy is incredibly concerning. There was a thread on Twitter from Dr. Lindsay Stallones Marshall about the negative impact of Ballard’s operations. In that thread there is an article from Slate that details someone who went on a raid with Ballard’s team to rescue children and ended up being haunted by the event. It’s clear from some of these sources that O.U.R is not providing aftercare for the victims of human trafficking. Sure, the body can heal, but psychological damage from these crimes is long-lasting and requires professional help, which Ballard’s organization doesn’t seem to provide. Also, they are inadvertantly creating the demand for this crap. It’s clear to me that Tim Ballard is a glory-seeking liar and grifter out for his own gratification.
So, where does actor Jim Caviezel fit into all of this? Well, like Ballard, Mr. Caviezel is a very conservative and religious individual. Nothing terribly wrong with that, except that Mr. Caviezel has fallen prey to QAnon conspiracy theories and lies that were also being pushed by Ballard and Utah’s Attorney General, Sean Reyes. Look, Jim Caviezel is a good actor when he picks the right material. I think he’s great in Sound of Freedom. I really do. But ever since he played Jesus in Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ, he’s become very gullible when it comes to conspiracy theories. Do I blame Angel Studios for all of this? Strangely, no. Yeah, they’re a faith-based film-making group based in Provo, Utah, but the controversy surrounding Sound of Freedom can be laid at the feet of Ballard and Caviezel. As I said before, I stand by my review of the film. I’m not here to tell you NOT to see it. I’m here to tell you to be aware of the issues surrounding the film, and whether or not that’s going to affect your decision to see it. The issue of human trafficking is a legitimate issue, but it can’t be tackled by people who would take advantage of the situation for their own gain. The right-wing media is attacking the left because the liberal media wants the actual truth behind O.U.R, and we’re not getting it. Not from Ballard, not from Caviezel and certainly not the conservative and religious right. This post may lay bare my political and social leanings, but what I’m interested in is the truth. I want Ballard and O.U.R to come forward and be honest about how they operate and how they deal with the victims, because right now, I’m having a very difficult believing anything they claim.
One should always listen to their Mom 😉