Director Justin Kurzel continues to tap into true crime history for his seventh feature in the gripping true crime drama, "The Order." Zach Baylin pens the film screenplay based on the 1989 non-fiction book The Silent Brotherhood by Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt.
After a tumultuous career and in failing health, Special Agent Terry Husk (Jude Law) finds himself on desk duty in a one-person FBI office in the quiet town of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Meanwhile, a series of daring daylight bank robberies and armored car heists across the Pacific Northwest has left law enforcement puzzled and the public in a state of panic.
With his days seemingly uneventful, Husk becomes intrigued by the spree, but the local sheriff shows little interest in helping. Eager young deputy Jamie Bowen (Tye Sheridan) and Terry's former FBI colleague Joanne Carney (Jurnee Smollett) join the investigation, and together, they uncover a mystery that leads to the malevolent Bob Mathews (Nicholas Hoult), a charismatic white supremacist with a cult-like following and a plan for chaos.
"The Order" opens up in the early eighties with the reenactment of a show for late radio host Alan Berg. Knowing little about Berg from the 1988 films "Betrayed" and "Talk Radio," I assumed where Justin Kurzel would take the movie. To my surprise, I was quickly proven wrong, and instead, the director delivers a cat-and-mouse style thriller that harks back to the eighties.
Stereotypes almost overload Jude Law's FBI agent, but it does work for the character. He is a loner who has become part of the old iron, a guard who lives for his job, and his family is broken. However, the film picks up when he finally begins to work the characters with Smollett and Sheridan. Smollett and Sheridan have had two of the best child actor-to-adult transitions in recent memory, and neither comes off as forced.
On the other hand, Nicholas Hoult is as chilling as Bob Matthews. While Hoult has erased Hollywood's leading man, Schick, numerous, what he does here is a bit more complex. He manages to convince his fellow campaigners with convincing charisma, but it is always clear to his spectacle that more has to hide behind his facade, which can only be guessed by his leadership role. In a less crowded year, Hoult may get some awards talk.
Finally, there are some action sequences since this is a crime drama. I want to commend the director for how he handles them. Loud music and shaky cam are nowhere in sight, which gives the film a realistic feel and creates organic tension. Now, I will admit that initially, the film didn't win me over. The dialogue by some of Matthews's followers concerning their vision is laughable, and there is a one-line dialogue about Israelites from an Aryan Nations preacher, Richard Butler (Victor Slezak), which will earn an eye roll from melanin cinephiles.
Nevertheless, upon reflection on my drive home and thinking about the current political landscape, "The Order" serves as a reminder that as much as things change, the more they stay the same.
Final Grade: B
"The Order" is scheduled to be released theatrically in the United States on December 6, 2024
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