A sleeper hit is climbing its way up the UK top 10 movies chart on Prime Video (Picture: Amazon/Courtesy Everett Collection)
A movie that has somewhat flown under the radar since its blockbuster $250,570,396 (£200,080,461) release has been making waves with its audience on Amazon Prime Video.
Sound of Silence, starring Jim Caviezel, Mira Sorvino, and Bill Camp, enjoyed a massive opening in cinemas a few years ago, grossing dozens of times its small budget of $14.5million (£11.6m), and becoming one of the most successful independent films of all time.
It gave ground only to Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning and then Barbie and Oppenheimer at the US box office as it gathered momentum after its surprise success upon release.
Billed as being ‘based on the incredible true story’, Sound of Silence stars Caviezel as real-life former US government agent Tim Ballard, who rescues a young boy from ruthless child traffickers.
After learning the boy’s sister is still captive, he quits his job and turns vigilante, embarking on a dangerous mission to rescue hundreds of children from some of the darkest depths of the criminal underworld in the Colombian jungle.
While the faith-based thriller was met with mixed reviews upon release, fans embraced it from the off – with over 10,000 verified ratings giving it an impressive 99% audience score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
Sound of Freedom stars Jim Caviezel as a real former government agent and is inspired by real events (Picture: Amazon/Everett/Rex/Shutterstock)
The film has managed to hold onto a massive 99% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes (Picture: Everett/Rex/Shutterstock)
Now its popularity has followed it to streaming, with Sound of Freedom reaching the number seven spot on Amazon Prime Video’s UK movies chart after being made available free for subscribers in the territory.
The sleeper hit has been branded a ‘masterpiece’, ‘incredible’ and ‘eye opening’ by its enthusiastic fans.
‘The sound of freedom shows truth in its rawest form. This film needs to be shown in schools and to parents,’ demanded Raeleen S in her five-star review, while Jake D praised it as ‘heart-wrenching’.
Marc S declared it a ‘tear-jerking must watch’, while Rick R wrote in his top-marks reaction: ‘I didn’t think I would like this movie. Very well done with a difficult subject well handled. Highly recommend for all.’
Not all agreed with Sound of Freedom being highly praised though – Diego Q branded it a ‘snoozefest’ and Afand A insisted it was ‘hot garbage’.
The Sound of Freedom also sparked a heated debate following its release amid claims of catering to QAnon conspiracy theorists and a deceptive ticket sales strategy that exaggerated organic support, while fans were also riled up by rumours of sabotaged cinema screenings – firmly denied by AMC Theatres and filmmakers Angel Studios – and accusations of anti-Christian bias.
It’s one of the most successful independent movies ever made, although Sound of Freedom also sparked some controversy (Picture: Amazon/Everett/Rex/Shutterstock)
Nonetheless, the passion of its fanbase saw them in uproar when the film was ‘snubbed’ at the 2024 Oscars after being the unexpected breakout hit of 2023.
It was endorsed by the likes of Mel Gibson, Jewel and Elon Musk, with Donald Trump also hosting a special screening at Trump National Golf Club.
Sound of Freedom is streaming for free on Prime Video now.
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