The Order is an intense cat-and-mouse political thriller that may feel timely and relevant given what the film’s subject matter is about. What might or might not surprise you is that this film is based on a true story.

A few weeks ago, when I first saw a trailer email, I dismissed it, thinking I cannot watch another film about white nationalists. I’d rather turn on a film or TV show for escapism. But sadly, the subject matter is still relevant today, especially the antisemitism. This film features the violent kind associated with the far-right–an incident that took place during the 1980s. That’s not to say anything of left-wing antisemitism, but that’s another story for another day.

From the outside looking in, a string of violent robberies in the Pacific Northwest would not be associated with an attempt to overthrow the government. And yet, these daylight bank robberies and armored car heists have people panicking throughout the region. What does law enforcement make of it? FBI agent Terry Husk (Jude Law) notices how the attacks are becoming more violent and soon believes that the domestic terrorists–yes, that’s what they are–are going to use the stolen money to finance a coup against the U.S. government. Sound familiar, right? It does not involve a then-former American president inciting his followers to overthrow American democracy and prevent the peaceful transfer of power at the time.

One feels for Husk, especially with the FBI assigning him to a one-man office Coeur d’Alene, Idaho after 25 years. It is hardly ideal but he makes the best of the situation. How does the local sheriff feel? No interest whatsoever. A local deputy, Jamie Bowen (Tye Sheridan), and Husk’s FBI colleague, Joanne Carney (Jurnee Smollett), join in the investigation efforts. It’s through their investigation in which they learn of Bob Mathews’ (Nicholas Hoult) involvement. From there, they go into cat-and-mouse mode.

Husk–who is not based on any one agent in particular–and his fellow agents soon entangle themselves within the world of white nationalists in hopes of staving off the violent uprising. This militia, known as The Order, manages to steal over $4 million. They even assassinate a Jewish radio broadcaster Alan Berg (Marc Maron) in Denver. The FBI agents pursue Mathews and things get–not shocking–very bloody during the standoff.

Cat-and-mouse thriller aside, what makes The Order so terrifying is just how easy it is for someone to be radicalized with hate. Hate is not something that people are ingrained with at birth. No, hate is something that people learn. Anyway, I never heard about Bob Mathews or The Order until watching this film. He goes from being a Mormon survivalist to an extremist cult leader. Mathews splintered off of another white nationalist group because they were not moving fast enough for his liking! Imagine a white nationalist being too impatient for other white nationalists going through with their plans. What does he do? He recruits other extremists and starts down this violent path. His playbook? Go figure it’s a racist and antisemitic novel. I won’t name it here.

DIRECTOR: Justin Kurzel
SCREENWRITER: Zach Baylin
CAST: Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Jurnee Smollett, Alison Oliver, and Marc Maron

Vertical Entertainment releases The Order in theaters on December 6, 2024. Grade: 3.5/5

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