As much complaining as we do about life in the U.S., we take an awful lot for granted. Every now and then, however, we see something in the media that humbles us, making our first world complaints seem petty and insignificant. Such is the case with the harrowing film Freetown, based on the true story of six Christian missionaries attempting to escape their native Liberia during its 1990 civil war. In these current times of international strife, when believers are being randomly assassinated for not sharing the beliefs of extremists, Freetown puts a face and a plot on the cost and value of faith in far too many parts of the world.

Yes, Freetown is a faith-based film, a story about Mormon missionaries, to be specific, but that should not dissuade non-Mormons or non-believers from seeing it. It uniquely stands as an intriguing political thriller, with faith adroitly woven in so as not to be overwhelming. This is not one of those smack-you-in-the-face Bible thumpers with cartoonish good and bad guys. This has a many layered, all-African cast playing characters that are conflicted, flawed, and quietly heroic.

In Freetown, we find six ‘Elders’ (missionaries in their late teens and early twenties) reaching the point where they can no longer preach their LDS faith, because fighting between tribes and government factions is so severe that people are being randomly murdered in the streets. They convince their local leader to drive them on a two day journey that will take them over the boarder to Freetown, embarking on a perilous road trip that could end in a massacre at any moment. It’s their faith and their optimistic good nature, as well as their cunning, that carries them ever onward.

Director Garrett Batty, who is also responsible for another LDS-themed thriller, The Saratov Approach, has boldly taken on a culture with which most of its core audience is unfamiliar. Chances are few of them have seen the grim and bloody Blood Diamond or Hotel Rwanda, two films that also deal with violent civil war in Africa. Nor does Batty shy away from characters discussing the very uncomfortable issue of, until the late ’70’s, men of African decent were denied the opportunity to hold the priesthood. It’s a fascinating take on a familiar religion in a different cultural setting, and if the strong accents are a bit difficult to understand at times, making the extra effort keeps the audience all the more engaged. You don’t want to miss a single word.

Freetown is a standard bearing film, in that it’s the first LDS-themed movie to have an international release–it premiered in Ghana, where it was filmed, the second week of March. Freetown was also a selection at the 2015 Pan African Film Festival. It opens in the US on April 8, in many theaters throughout California, New York, Utah, and hundreds of locations in-between. See the official Freetown website for screenings in your area.

Rated PG-13

1 Hour 56 Minutes

https://youtu.be/Jz7FU9MLov4

FREETOWN Review