Good article about the award-winning writer/director's thoughts on the controversies that have come out regarding his film. Nice to see things from his perspective.
'Sound of Freedom' director Alejandro Monteverde addresses controversies: 'Breaks my heart'
For "Sound of Freedom" writer and director Alejandro Monteverde, it is the best of times in the most disruptive of times.
His $14.5 million independent film that languished for four years without distribution has turned into the surprise hit of summer: The movie has raked in $173 million at the North American box office since July 4, improbably ahead of Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible − Dead Reckoning Part One" ($160 million).
Yet the thriller, which is based on a true story and features "The Passion of the Christ" star Jim Caviezel as Tim Ballard, who went from U.S. Department of Homeland Security agent to anti-child sex trafficking crusader, has become a lightning rod for criticism and a contentious political football.
"The movie has become a circus on the political spectrum," says Monteverde.
As "Sound of Freedom" continues its stunning theatrical run in more than 2,800 theaters, the Mexican film director, whose 2006 film "Bella" won the People's Choice Award at Toronto Film Festival, is addressing the controversies swirling around his movie.
"It breaks my heart that this movie is − in any way, shape or form − part of a controversy. It shouldn't be," says Monteverde, who is married to model and actress Ali Landry.
