The Order

Midway through the movie, I suddenly remembered Jude Law is British-he's so convincing in this role. His performance, along with the rest of the cast, was excellent. Nicholas Hoult, in particular, was a standout. I couldn't have imagined him as a cult leader, having mostly seen him in quirky or sci-fi roles, but this film showcased his range brilliantly. Tye Sheridan was fantastic as always, and it was great to see him in a bigger project again. I really liked when he was upset with the FBI's incompetence. Jurnee Smollett also delivered a strong performance.

One scene that really stuck with me was the discovery of the body. I think it's my "favorite" one; it felt disturbingly real and visceral, especially with the character using his hands to dig up the grave instead of a shovel. That detail made it feel grounded, almost like you were right there, literally watching dirty work.

The pacing is slow, but it builds towards a more gripping third act. The motel shootout was shock, and it's in the final act where everything comes together. I think you usually have it in the back of your head, absentmindedly even, that the main characters will make it so the theatre gasped. The film touches on themes of hate , and it's always ironic and unsettling to hear people using the guise of faith to spread such. It was pretty interesting to me that the book referenced in the story is connected to real-world events like January 6 as well.

While I wasn't blown away, the movie met my expectations-which were sorta high. It's well-made and believable, even if it leans on familiar archetypes and tropes: the hate-filled ideology, the cult dynamics, the people working to dismantle it. So while nothing in the movie really surprises or blows you away, it's that familiarity makes the story feel real because characters like these do exist.

In the end, while it didn't resonate with me on a deeper level or stick with me after the credits rolled, it's a solid film with strong performances and a compelling, relevant narrative.

The Order is a mostly paint-by-numbers crime drama with some solid execution.

I don't have too much to say about this film since it's actually not really stand-out in any way. It's at its best when focused on the life and times of members in The Order and fleshing out this world of the rural pacific northwest. Nicholas Hoult is having a hell of a year and this is another great performance to add to the resume for the year. Everyone is was just okay performance-wise but there has to be some blame on the writers for leaning so deeply into the hard-boiled detective tropes. Sometimes the FBI officers just act way too-cool-for-school and it shows some laziness on the writers' part. A nice foil to that is Jamie (Tye Sheridan) who does a fantastically accurate impression of a small town cop. I'll be a defector and say that I actually enjoyed the action sequences, and I like that details within action plot points have actual effect later in the story. I'm getting a lot of No Country For Old Men influence, and that's a good thing.

The film has a really good handle on itself with a steady mix of tension building and discovery until the third act in which themes muddy significantly. There was some kind of two-sides-of-the-same-coin subtheme being attempted in the end between Terry and Bob that didn't really work for me, and cops suddenly lose all the discipline they had earlier in the film to do action hero things. There is a whole lot of world building in the film that adds to the whole rural aesthetic but I wonder if it contributed to its slow pacing. The film certainly felt long for a less than 2 hour movie.

Enjoyable crime thriller with some salient themes of racism and uprising to think about.

I would say the movie is above average, but it's not a masterpiece

Jude Law is really good in his role as this weary and seasoned FBI agent. I like the supporting cast members. I think Nicholas Hault actually looks a lot like Bob Matthews (based on his picture, which I saw on Wiki), and the young sheriff who works with Jude Law is good too. The movie's scenery is gorgeous, with the forests, mountains, and lake. I like the score too. There is an overall dark and gritty vibe throughout the film

The movie doesn't reach greatness because of the plot and predictability. I know that the events are based on a true story, so I get that the plot was limited since they had to follow the events that really occurred (note: I had never heard of Bob Matthews or the Turner diaries until I watched this movie). But they telegraphed some events, such as one character's death, way too obviously. I also feel that the film could've given more about the villain's motivations other than "they're evil racist white men." The movie early on shows a divide between Bob Matthews group and another white supremacist group: the latter believes that the right way to push white supremacy is through legal means, such as getting white supremacists elected to office. I feel this plot thread could have been explored more. The police scenes include some cliches too

Lastly - there was no need to insert politics at the very end, with a reference to January 6th, 2021.

Another dark piece of history. I never knew of this story, so i was fascinated the whole time. I'd love to do a deeper dive into it. The feel to this movie was great! I felt like i was in a time machine. The actors were absolutely amazing, especially Jude Law! His character was absolutely intense and something you love to see on the big screen. It was him alone that made this movie as enjoyable as it was. The tense feelings this movie gave you as the plot slowly shows itself. It honestly feels like this same thing could happen today but you'd hope we would be better at recognizing it. I highly suggest this for everyone to see!

Saw in AMC theater 12-14-2024.

Rating - 8.1: Overall, good historical crime thriller that exposes the unknown history of "The Order" in the 1980s; the film does a very good job showcasing the beauty of the Pacific Northwest through its cinematography and creates an engaging thriller based on real events, but the movie is held back by its pretty shallow composite characters and overt parallels to modern-day events.

Direction - Good: The direction on a macroscale feels grand as they have these big panning shots to show the beauty in the seclusion of the Pacific Northwest, and he does a good job building the thrilling nature of the action scenes; the direction on a microscale is good as these moments are where you really get to know the characters and their relationships with each other; the storytelling is good as it follows events that really happened, but uses your emotional investment with these characters to make you care about what happens next; he builds tension very well as this is what makes the action sequences feel very thrilling

Story - Pretty Good to Good: The concept is good, as is a historical crime thriller on "The Order", a white nationalist group that is not really heard of that much; the plot structure is good, as it goes through the rise and fall of "The Order"; character writing is good for the real-life characters, as it does a good job accurately depicting how they were in real life, but pretty bad for the composite characters, as they are pretty void of anything that makes you care for them

Screenplay - Pretty Good to Good: The dialogue is good and crisp, and does a good job in painting who these people actually were, but feels a bit overt when they are trying to make modern references to storming the capital; the biopic does a good job in bringing to light the rise in white nationalism in the 1980s, "The Order," and "The Turner Diaries," and the parallels between this and January 6th; the foreshadowing is good, but mostly follows what happened in real life

Acting - Pretty Good to Good: Jude Law - Good (Commands the movie with his presence and carries himself well in the action sequences; builds chemistry well with his castmates), Nicholas Hoult - Good (Plays the antagonist well, as you get a sense of who the character was in real life), Tye Sheridan - Pretty Good (Plays the sidekick role well and has good chemistry with Law), Rest of the cast - Pretty Good (Everyone plays their role well and helps support moving the story forward and the main cast)

Score - Good: It is used very well in conjunction with the cinematic nature shots to show the seclusion in the environment, and helps make the thriller tense in the more action-based scenes

Cinematography - Good to very Good: It had really beautiful shots to help show the seclusion of the Pacific Northwest and used them well in the action sequences

Editing - Good: Felt polished and helped put together the action sequences

Sound - Very Good: Felt very clear and authentic to the action sequences and helped make the thriller tense in the right moments; helped also show the seclusion in some moments

Visual Effects - Good: Good use of practical effects in the action sequences

Production Design - Good: Really helped show the beauty and seclusion of the Pacific Northwest

Pacing - Pacing is good

Climax - The climax is executed well as it feels like a culmination of all the tension that was building throughout the movie

Tone - Tone is similar to that of a historical crime thriller, which is what this movie is

Final Notes - I saw the premiere at the Austin Film Festival.