December 8, 2024 · Watch the official trailer
How is it possible that a gritty, vintage crime drama based on a true story, starring Jude Law, and released in December will be seen by very little of the American movie-going population?
Evoking films like “Dirty Harry” and “The Untouchables,” “The Order” follows a weathered, grizzled FBI agent in the mid 1980s in rural parts of the Pacific Northwest, tracking a string of seemingly unrelated cases that lead to a fringe group of white supremacists with their sights set on tearing down the US government.
Law does a terrific job of masking his usual charm to play against type as a gruff, alcoholic agent who has seen far too much loss and the relatively stoic manner in which he portrays his Terry Husk is fertile ground for Law to chew up the visual scenery of the film with a quiet, demure style that's equal parts Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, and Robert Redford.
There is a heart-wrenching fatalism in Law’s performance that undercuts some of the more simplistic crime narrative that “The Order” follows. However, the isolation that his character feels throughout much of the film begins to soften as he works with local cops to try to figure out the case and the erstwhile partnership he shares with Tye Sheridan's deputy character provides Law with an opportunity to layer his performance as he sees a younger idealistic version of himself that he wants to protect.
“The Order” goes out of its way to have Law’s Terry showcased as the opposite side of the same coin as Nicholas Hoult's revolutionary leader Bob Mathews, whose almost monotonic charisma brings a sense of warmth and unease to a character that likens himself less like Charles Manson than George Washington and the blurring of the lines between criminal and vigilante in Hoult's performance make for an unique dichotomy within the larger context of the world.
It's surprising just how far director Justin Kurzel and screenwriter Zach Baylin go to show the unique psychological similarities between Terry and Bob, even having one supporting character outright suggest that blind loyalty to the United States government is equivalent to being in a cult when Bob is literally attempting to lead a crime family in cultlike fashion.
Although there are white nationalist sentiments throughout “The Order,” this isn't showcased in decidedly pointed ways like how, for example, Spike Lee's “BlacKkKlansman” was a response to the Charlottesville riots. However, the gritty, vintage nature of “The Order” and its relevance to events happening worldwide throughout the past several decades have significant importance regardless of when the film is set or when it was meant to be released.
Kurzman takes no overt political stance in the film's narrative beyond that of lawman and criminal, and in this way, “The Order” feels much more reminiscent of “Dirty Harry” than anything else as Terry gets inside the mind of his criminal counterpart in order to break the case while attempting not to completely break down psychologically. The film's supporting ensemble cast is excellent in providing color and context to the larger world of the film with Sheridan going beyond the simple dopey sidekick to Law with a layered, textured performance as a young cop wanting to do the right thing.
Law’s interactions with other secondary characters like Neo-Nazi reverend Richard Butler and the two women who play Bob's wife and lover respectively help recontextualize Terry's psych psyche and reveal to him how similar he truly is to Bob and the razor’s edge he walks towards the dark side.
What makes “The Order” stand apart from other crime dramas is not only the unique, layered nuances of the lead performers, but the beautifully shot cinematography from Adam Arkapaw that takes advantage of wide-open landscapes in the film's rural settings to, at times, bring about further isolation and reflection for Terry, but also to draw audiences in during slower, colder, and more somber moments of the film. This is also intentional to the film’s expertly crafted action sequences, which extend the film’s more vintage style with practical effects and reinforce the emotional weight and drama of scenes.
Led by dynamic lead performances from Law and Hoult, “The Order” is a film that ardent cinephiles will bemoan that they didn't see in theaters months after its exit given its limited theatrical release.
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