The Order

 

 

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Director Sheldon Lettich and Jean-Claude Van Damme are reunited in "The Order," a silly action movie that, despite a nice budget, went direct-to-video because, let's face it, Van Damme just can't get a box-office grab like he could with "Timecop" and "Universal Soldier." But the film looks nicely polished and it's pretty short, with action scenes kept to a maximum, just the way I like it. The plot is ridiculous, but most of JCVD's films are. This one has him travelling to Israel, I think, and doing battle with a cult that wants to destroy him and his father. Not a complete failure for Van Damme.

Released in time for Christmas in 2001,this Jean Claude van Damme movie,co-written by JCVD,has high production values,a nice plot and some solid supporting acting from its co stars to make this film an above average romp for the Muscles from Brussels.
The story revolves around one Rudy Cafmeyer,a full time and successful thief who is trying to steal a Faberge egg worth millions.He gets away but barely.He next visits his father who is a museum curator dealing in antiquities.When he leaves his father begs him to call that evening.Rudy goes to some contacts to pawn his precious egg off but it gets broken in a scuffle and he lands in jail.Out on bail he gets a frantic call from his father from Israel,who begs him for help.
Rudy flies to Israel and is greeted by a an old friend of his fathers Prof.Finlay(Charlton Heston).His father has been kidnapped for an ancient map he had in his possession containing the whereabouts of a secret passage underneath the ancient city of Jerusalem .The kidnappers are of an ancient religious order that now want to create anarchy and a holy war by blowing up the third most holiest of all Muslim temples of worship.Rudy has not only this sect to contend with but the police whose head Ben Nerr(Ben Cross)doesn;t believe his story and wants him out of the country.Rudy leads them all on a merry chase through the back streets of the old city but ends up getting shot.A police woman befriends Rudy,helps him recover and with another friend infiltrates the sect itself.
During a clandestine meeting of the Order Rudy decides to investigate the old catacombs beneath the city.He finds his father but they are both caught and forced to lead the way to the secret area where a load of explosives will be detonated and the so called war will begin.Of course Rudy has other plans and ultimately,after many tense moments,he is able to foil the plot.Back home with his father at the museum Rudy asks what a certain old document is and is told to leave it alone,as it is valuable.This is how things started out the first time around but this time Rudy sneaks out the door with the document in his hand,as we hear his father shouting after him.
This movie has few slow spots and moves along at a good clip.There are plenty of action scenes mixed with both serious and humorous moments to keep ones interest throughout.Of course Van Damme is in good form and his outstanding moment,doing what he does best,is a high spread kick shot getting two on either side simultaneously.The film was shot on actual location in the city of Jerusalem(and the surrounding countryside)in both the Muslim and Christian side.Director Sheldon Lettich uses a deft touch in his directing duties,not too light a hand nor too heavy.
Technically speaking this DVD is issued in both widescreen and full screen.The w/s version is clear and crisp and the sound is quite good;no complaints.
All in all an above average Van Damme entry with a compelling storyline that keeps you watching from beginning to end.Recommended.

Synopsis:
Rudy Cafmeyer (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is an international artifacts smuggle whose father is a well known museum Curator. When Rudy's father (Vernon Dobtcheff) goes missing mysteriously in Israel, Rudy embarks on a quest to find him. The end result is a confrontation with a lovely Israeli police officer named Dalia (Sofia Milos), the loss of a couple friends and being wrapped up in a religious conspiracy involving a strange middle eastern cult and a cultist (Brian Thompson) with nefarious plans.

About the Movie:
If you're looking for a well written, well thought out, well acted action flick, this isn't really it. But really, are we surprised? It has Van Damme in it.

In fact, The Order is something of a rip-off of the Indiana Jones movies. You have the archeologist father who goes missing, a son looking for him, a weird religious cult, and a lost religious treasure . . . Nothing new here, well, except for maybe the martial arts element.

But it's not all bad, making up for a silly, clichéd and completely unoriginal plot by having a few very enjoyable moments. Van Damme is an entertaining martial artist and while his fight scenes aren't as flamboyant or entertaining as, say, Jackie Chan's, he holds his own quite well. Van Damme even gets to engage in a sword fight in this movie, which is probably the first time I've seen him do that. I bet you can't guess who wins it.

The best scene in this movie, partly because the musical score adds so much to it, is the one where Van Damme is masquerading as a Hasidic Jew, with a beard, hat and curly hair, then has to run from the police through the middle of crowded Jerusalem. There's something very goofy about the whole sequence that makes it quite comic and a lot of fun to watch.

Charleton Heston has a cameo in this movie as well, both as the narrator of the opening teaser and in a role later on. Unfortunately, it has him dying rather senselessly in the first 3rd of the movie, wasting the talents of a great and notable actor. It would have been wonderful if Charleton could have played the role of Van Damme's father instead of Vernon Dobtcheff (who's put on accent was atrocious). Heston's such a solid actor, it was disappointing that he didn't have a more significant role.

The acting in this movie isn't great. Even Heston's role is a bit on the stagey side. And of course, Van Damme will never win any awards for HIS acting. But this isn't a movie you watch for the acting, and a lot can be forgiven since the attractive Sofia Milos plays the female lead and incidentally is probably the strongest actor in the film.

One strong point of this movie is the musical score (arranged by Pino Donaggio). It isn't on the level of top notch movie, but it's possibly better than many action movies have, blending humor and a real feel for its subject mater into what is at times, a masterful addition to the action sequences.

Overall, this is a brainless, sit down and have fun type of movie. There's certainly quite a few martial arts action movies of this type out there that beat this one hands down, but The Order has its high points and could be a lot worse.

About the DVD:
The Order comes in a plastic hard case on a double sided DVD with both fullscreen and widescreen versions in Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. It has not been translated into any other languages besides its original English, though it does contain English and French subtitles. Both the video and audio transfer appear to be very good. Even on a high resolution screen, the video had only a little grain and few artifacts.

As far as special features, this movie has none except for three theatrical trailers, two being for other movies. It also has scene selections, though I don't count that as a special feature. Overall, this is a very basic, no frills DVD release.

Bottom Line: A unoriginal but somewhat entertaining film on a budget DVD release. 3 Stars.

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2.0 out of 5 stars The quest continues...
By now, looking for a well-written coherent plot in a Jean-Claude Van Damme film is a bit like seeking the Holy Grail. The Order, insures that the quest will continue. Read more

Published on Dec 29 2003 by trebe

2.0 out of 5 stars Van Damnes worst
Im a big fan of Van Damne,but when i saw this movie i was really disapointed,the setting is dull,the story is dull and the guy he fights dull. Read more

Published on Dec 10 2003 by Chase

3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable no brainer
The Order sees Jean Claude Van Damme venturing into Israel in search of his father ,an academic who holds the key to a priceless treasure and who thereby comes into conflict with... Read more

Published on July 24 2003 by F. J. Harvey

3.0 out of 5 stars Van Damme's best since "Maximum Risk"
THE ORDER sees the reteaming of action star Jean-Claude Van Damme and director Sheldon Lettich (LIONHEART, DOUBLE IMPACT). Read more

Published on April 29 2003 by BD Ashley

3.0 out of 5 stars OH! SOFIA!
This is a typical Van-Damm movie and its not to bad really. Why his releases are being relegated to strictly video now is unknown to me. One high note is the... Read more

Published on Oct 15 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars Younger looking skin.
Jean-Claude should try some Oil of Ulan or Ulay for younger looking skin. He has a body of a twenty year old. Ulay would make his face look like it too. Read more

Published on Sep 26 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as some other Van Damme movies
Great movie, however, Charlton Heston could have lasted a little longer, more booby traps, more in the style of Bloodsport or Kickboxer, more spinning air kicks, more muscle... Read more

Published on Sep 4 2002 by nbs1243

4.0 out of 5 stars BETTER THAN THE USUAL DEFINETLEY!
IN this movie Jean-Claude seems to have taken a different approach,which is a good thing and he needed to do it really. Read more

Published on Aug 29 2002 by Dave B

1.0 out of 5 stars God Damn!!!
This is one really bad movie! (That's bad as in terrible) And it's not even in the "so bad it's good" category. It's just bloody awful. Don't bother watching it. Read more

Published on Aug 21 2002 by saphros

1.0 out of 5 stars The Order is a very bad movie
This is quite possibly the worst movie I have even seen. Do not rent it, do not even think about renting it. Do not even think about thinking about renting it. Read more

Published on July 28 2002 by Nucca Sucka

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