The film recounts the story of Operation Auca, in which five American Christian missionaries attempted to evangelize the Waodani people of the tropical rain forest of Eastern Ecuador.

[2] The Waodani people of the tropical rain forest along the Curaray River in a remote and mostly undeveloped the Amazonian region of Ecuador live with a traditional animist worldview.

After some days, one Waodani man and two women approach the missionaries who have camped on the sandbar, and have a reasonably friendly, although difficult to communicate, first encounter.

Authorities from Ecuador and the US military come up river in canoes in a large party, protected by many rifles, and recover four of the five bodies.

Mincayani digs furiously in the bank of the river, and uncovers a bit of the metal frame and fabric of Nate's airplane that the Waodani had buried, and informs Steve this is where his father died.

The website's consensus reads, "Shoddy filmmaking and a lack of character development derail what could be a potentially compelling tale.

Some secular critics believed the story may be seen as presenting an uncritical view of a situation where native peoples were eventually exploited regardless of "good intentions"[6] such as concerns[clarification needed] about SIL International.

[citation needed] There was some concern among various Christian groups that lead actor Chad Allen, who portrays Nate Saint (and his son Steve as an adult), is openly gay.

Steve Saint, who was heavily involved in production, has stated in interviews that he himself had reservations, but that God indicated to him that Allen was the proper choice.

[7] Other Christian groups, such as VCY America's Vic Eliason, wished the film had more explicitly portrayed the Gospel message (i.e. salvation through Jesus Christ).