Directed by Justin Kurzel — Screenplay by Zach Baylin.
Based on Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt’s The Silent Brotherhood, Justin Kurzel’s The Order follows a veteran FBI agent, Terry Husk (played by Jude Law), who, alongside a local Idaho Deputy named Jamie Bowen (played by Tye Sheridan), takes on a case to investigate a series of disappearances and instances of domestic terrorism carried out by a white supremacist militant group led by a man named Bob Mathews (played by Nicholas Hoult).
I was absolutely blown away by The Order, which is a film that deserved far better than to be shown in less than a thousand theaters in America and on streaming, via an unceremonious release, in the rest of the world. It feels like it is being swept under the rug because distributors were concerned about the reaction in Trump’s America 2.0, but this is an important and politically charged film about the terrorism and violence committed by white supremacists — the disease of white supremacy. In its closing remarks (via on-screen text), the film even briefly comments on the domestic terror of January 6th.
It also happens to be, easily, Justin Kurzel’s best film. Kurzel, best known for Assassin’s Creed and his Macbeth adaptation starring Michael Fassbender, has turned in an absolutely riveting, horrifying, and intense, no-holds-barred thriller with chilling subject matter and phenomenal set-pieces that’ll remind you of some of the best American-set thrillers ever, including, but not limited to, Hell or High Water, No Country for Old Men, and BlackKklansman.
The performances are also quite good with Jude Law, despite his character being somewhat archetypal, being extraordinary. Law uses his whole body and, in doing so, turns in an exceptionally committed lead performance. Tye Sheridan is also good, although his character’s arc was a little bit too predictable. Then there’s Nicholas Hoult, who had an absolutely incredible 2024. This isn’t the first time that Hoult is playing an indoctrinated cult-member, but here he is doing it differently than he’s ever done it before. He’s confident and in charge and quite good as this dangerous and scarily driven main antagonist — it’s arguably one of his best performances ever (and it speaks volumes that it’s not the first time I’ve thought that with him after seeing a 2024 performance of his — also see Juror #2).
Justin Kurzel’s The Order is a jaw-droppingly riveting ‘FBI vs. white supremacy’ flick filled with heists, compelling performances, and great cinematography, which emphasizes the gorgeous and unique landscape of the country perhaps to stress the contrast between the natural beauty of the environment and the festering hateful ideologies that threaten to cover it all in darkness. The film also features moments with powerful editing. There’s a moment where the film cuts from a scary scene of the white supremacist cult cheering and over to children hammering away on a toy keyboard, which says so much about the filmmaker’s feelings about his film’s antagonists. Frankly, this may be one of the year’s best films.
9 out of 10
– Review Written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen.
I'm Jeffrey Rex 