CinemaBlind’s Review – 70%
Pursuit of Freedom is deeply rooted in Christianity and while I am not religious myself. I can’t deny the fact that the film shows its story of faith in a very charming way. The George A. Johnson film follows the incredible true story of Anna (Jessica Koloian), a Ukranian mother of three who goes through hell when she is kidnapped by local mobsters and sold into prostitution and sexual slavery.
After nearly three years of enslavement, Anna is left for dead on the side of the road by the mobsters after she becomes ill and is no longer attractive to clients. After weeks of lying unconscious, Anna awakens in a hospital in Amsterdam where she is helped by a kind nurse Naomi (Sharonne Lanier), who reads Anna passages from the Bible and leads her on the path of Christ.
As Anna’s health gets a bit better she wants to reunite with her children, who are hiding in Armenia with their grandmother. But because she has no papers and no idea where her children are, there isn’t anything anyone can do. Trapped between her failing health and a mountain of red tape, Anna’s chances of reuniting with her children are slim but because of some compassionate people who believe in helping the less fortunate, even at the expense of their own safety Anna finally has hope that she will find her children.
Pursuit of Freedom is in no way a brilliant film that will blow you away, but its incredible true story will definitely make your heart melt. The faith-based drama is bogged down with the budget of a mid-budget indie film, some on-the-nose dialogues, and some questionable accents that will take you out of the story for a bit.
Despite its shortcomings, Pursuit of Freedom puts its full faith into the characters, and for the most part, they don’t disappoint. Director and co-writer Johnson has done a great job crafting these characters and the actors who play them including Koloian and Stelio Savante have done a wonderful job of conveying the emotions of these complex and oftentimes broken characters. The film also stars Mark Lowry, Robia Scott, Sharrone Lanier, Brayden Eaton, Tenley Kellog, Elias Kemuel, and Robert Amaya.
In conclusion, Pursuit of Freedom has much to offer to the people who enjoy faith-based specifically Christian films. Johnson has done a wonderful job in creating a film that will definitely take its audience on a journey that won’t be easily forgotten and while it will face many problems reaching the masses, the people who will see it will surely enjoy it.