By William Perkins
Editor
With the smash hit movie Sound of Freedom sweeping the country and now set for international release, distributor Angel Studios is riding the still-rising wave of popularity and success — but Sound of Freedom is far from the crowdfunded studio’s first success.
With original series like The Chosen that follows the life of Jesus Christ and the animated The Wingfellow Saga for children, Angel Studios is on a roll that has the entertainment industry sitting up and taking notice of a segment of the movie-going public that is often seen as neglected but is flocking to theaters and streaming services to view its products.
“Angel Studios is a curated, free streaming platform offering exceptional movies, shows, and documentaries for all ages,” according to the company’s website. “Enjoy unlimited access to our award-winning, viewer-supported content designed to inspire, uplift, and unite through meaningful storytelling.”
While not an outright Christian production company – Sound of Freedom is rated PG-13 primarily for its discomfiting subject matter but also for a few spoken vulgarities – its products tend to soar well above the cultural depths to which secular Hollywood has sunk.
“Angel Studios is dedicated to delivering content appropriate for viewers of all ages,” the web site states. “Our platform is designed with family values in mind, ensuring children’s content promotes positive messages.”
Quite predictably, the studio hasn’t avoided criticism for its high standards. When it appeared Sound of Freedom was headed to the top of the box office, far-left magazine Rolling Stone headlined its review, “‘Sound of Freedom’ is a Superhero Movie for Dads with Brainworms.’”
The magazine slammed the movie for its “hackneyed white savior narrative” and “fetishizing the torture of its child victims,” and overlooked the very real-world tragedy of child sex-trafficking that is the subject of the movie and worried instead that it promoted “far-right conspiracy theories.”
The Washington Post and New York Times also chimed in with dark reviews and articles that, like Rolling Stone, essentially skirted the real theme of the motion picture and instead attempted to connect the dots to issues that weren’t even included in the movie.
However, Eduardo Verastegui, the film’s producer and one of the actors in the film, said, “They are doing us a favor, the more they attack the movie, people show up. ‘Sound of Freedom’ is saving lives.”
That people are still flocking to see the movie after several weeks in wide release validates that observation. While it had a production budget of $14.5 million, box office receipts as of July 25 have topped $127 million.
For more information on the Angel Studios mission and how to get involved, click here. To view the Sound of Freedom trailer, click here. For show times in Mississippi theaters, click here.
