The Order Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Unleash The Power.
In the year 1099, during the Crusades in the 11th Century, Christian soldiers arrive in Jerusalem and slaughter the local population. Christian soldier Charles Le Vaillant becomes demoralized by the horrors of war and decides to create a new religious order. This new order brings together, in a peaceful manner, members from the three religions of the region: Christians, Jews, and Muslims. As a self-imposed leader and messiah, Charles writes the sacred texts of the Order. The Christian Crusaders accuse Charles of heresy, and attack him and his disciples. During the attack, the last chapter from the sacred texts becomes lost in the desert. Now, in modern-day Israel, a devout contingent of Le Vaillant's followers continues to practice his peaceful teachings. But a disciple named Cyrus has a distorted view of the Order's peaceful intention. Rudy Cafmeyer is a thief and smuggler of valuable historical artifacts. Rudy manages to break into a high security building where he steals a Faberge Egg, the kind decorated with precious stones and manufactured expressly for the Russian Tsars. Needless to say, the alarm goes off, and Rudy has to fight his way out of the building. Despite this theft, Rudy is not really a bad guy. He stole the egg from the personal collection of a powerful Russian mafia boss. Rudy is a loving son who would do anything for his father Oscar "Ozzie" Cafmeyer. Ozzie, an archaeologist and museum curator, discovers the manuscripts that were lost during the crusades. The manuscripts clearly extol interfaith harmony. In those manuscripts, there is also an ancient map of Jerusalem, which shows the location of a mythical Jewish treasure. Ozzie travels to Israel, where Cyrus has him kidnapped. Rudy, who heard the kidnapping take place while talking to Ozzie on the phone, travels to Jerusalem to rescue Oscar. Oscar's associate, Professor Walt Finley, hands Rudy the key to a safe-deposit box in East Jerusalem before being gunned down by unknown assailants. Israeli Police Chief Ben Ner views Rudy's arrival with hostility and takes steps to have Rudy deported, but police lieutenant Dalia Barr risks her life and career to help Rudy — she was once a disciple of the Order, but she left when she was 18-years-old. Cyrus uses a car bomb to assassinate the Order's leader, Pierre Gaudet, and Cyrus steps up his own rhetoric, hoping to inflame his followers. Rudy opens the safe-deposit box and finds a map that shows a series of tunnels and a treasure room beneath Jerusalem. Ben Ner, who has partnered with Cyrus, covets the gold that the underground tunnels lead to, but Cyrus hopes to plant a bomb during Ramadan that will turn the Israelis against the Palestinians. Dalia and Rudy must get to the Order's monastery, free Ozzie, and prevent an explosion that could push tensions in the area way past the boiling point.
| Jean-Claude Van Damme | Rudy Cafmeyer/Charles Le Vaillant |
| Charlton Heston | Prof. Walter Finley |
| Sofia Milos | Lt. Dalia Barr |
| Brian Thompson | Cyrus Jacob |
| Ben Cross | Ben Ner |
| Vernon Dobtcheff | Oscar Cafmeyer |
| Sasson Gabai | Yuri |
| Alon Abutbul | Avram |
| Joey Tomaska | Goldman |
| Peter Malota | Amnon |
| Sharon Reginiano | Bassam |
| Sami Huri | Lieutenant Itsik |
| Jack Widerker | Executive |
| David Leitch | Detective Mike Moran |
| Abdel Qissi | Big Arab |
| Sheldon Lettich |
4.10 out of 10 (2121 votes)
Visitor Reviews
THE ORDER - At LAST!
posted on 08 Jan 2009I have eagerly awaited the release of THE ORDER, because once again it pairs JC with the direction of Sheldon Lettich. Shelden knows how to film JC better, in my opinion, than any of the more famous directors he has worked with. JC's high-flying kicks are better than ever in this one. This is an action packed film and I love every minute of it!
Van Damme is back, period!
posted on 29 Nov 2008This is all I can say. The hard-hitting Van Damme we grew to love is back again. Love him or hate him, you can't deny it. Van Damme is back! So, just get over the stupid comments and harsh hating, this is the man that we expect him to be. He is one in a million, and more real than both Jackie Chan and Jet Li. No harnesses, no bulls**t!!!
Not that bad.
posted on 05 Aug 2008Honestly, I bought this movie at Wal-Mart, as it was in the $5.50 bin and it looked like something that I would enjoy making fun of. It sat around for quite a while before I eventually popped it in to view it and to have a field day making fun of it. However, I didn't hate it. In fact, I rather enjoyed it. Yes, the film is filled with all sorts of different action cliches, but it is an enjoyable film if you don't try to analyze it and just enjoy it for what it is. The film has some good heart to it and the filmmakers themselves give off the impression that they enjoyed making this movie too. I would not advise anyone to go out of their way to see this, but if you stumble onto it, watch it with low expectations and you won't be let down.
Not one of Van Dammes best projects but, still tolerable.
posted on 14 Jun 2008I've always been a Van Damme fan since "Bloodsport", "Kickboxer", "Double Impact", etc. etc. etc. I have to say this movie in particular does'nt rank to well as far as his outstanding performances in the past. "The Order" is basically about Van Dammes character searching for his father in Israel. His father got a map that is desperately sought by religious fanatics and rebels.Like I've said before the acting is'nt great but, not terrible either. It does tend to wander off into absurd sillyness. I laughed at times at some of Van Dammes one liners. One of them being, "Where's my father you son of a (you know so, will not get vulgar). He says it in a very funny way and, I just started rollin'. The action is ok also but, nothing new really.Lastly the there is a little bit of romance between Van Damme and a certain women official but, what do you expect it is predictable to say the least along with some of the scenes. Overall it's a tad better than average Van Damme flick.
Shooting a little too high, but not bad!
posted on 29 May 2008These days, I never know what to expect from a Van Damme film. Is it going to be the old high-kicking style, the awful Dennis Rodman-era stuff, or completely different ("he's an actor!") stuff like his most recent and very good film "The Replicator."I had the same reservations about "The Order". What to expect? Well, the answer is somewhere in the middle. For Van Damme it's a return to his fighting roots with plenty of martial arts and action with less emphasis on acting (which is a good thing).The plot is a bit lofty, but moves very quickly with some genuinely good fight sequences. The characters, while not Oscar material, are interesting in their own way and include a very sexy leading lady (in tight tube tops!), the guy from "X-files" as a villain, and Charlton Heston who plays a spunky old professor and gets killed far too quickly.While there may be a few too many things going on (ie. a secret sect, a bomb, a buried treasure, a kidnapping, a heist, an expensive egg, etc.), overall, this film provides good comedy-action entertainment and is not a bad way to spend two hours. Just leave your thinking cap at the door, buy an extra-large tub of popcorn, and enjoy. 4/5 Stars.
Van Damme kickin' arse in the Middle East
posted on 21 May 2008Man, I caught this film last night on USA at 11:30. I was hesitant about watching this movie because it was on cable t.v. and I knew they would cut out all the good violence and language. Even though it was on cable t.v. I was not disappointed. This movie is very good. It started off action-packed and it ended action-packed. You could tell that Van Damme had really started to get back into exercising while watching this movie. I know from the video cover that this movie might look like another straight-to-home video action flick, but give this one a chance. This film clearly shows that Van Damme is still one of the best action movie stars out there today. Van Damme is in dire need of a comeback. Rent or watch this movie on t.v. You won't be disappointed.
He needs to stop writing his own movies
posted on 19 Apr 2008Just when I think Van Damme is on a comeback after watching Replicant, I run into The Order. Not that this movie is bad necessarily, as a matter of fact I did find it mildly entertaining, but it is a shallow story where JCVD plays what seems to be a stylized self-image. The minute I saw him driving a sports car and hitting on a pretty lady, I knew this movie was in trouble.I give this movie decent marks for some good action sequences, otherwise this movie is somewhat forgetable. Maybe they should've had more Charlton Heston in this picture. It certainly couldn't have hurt!While this is not the worst movie Van Damme has done, it does nothing at all to revive his career to big screen status. Some advice to JCVD: let the directors direct and the writers write. You just say what they write and kick the kicks, and you'll be fine!
An absolute stinker
posted on 12 Oct 2007An absolute stinker! cliché follows cliché follows cliché.... a sort of Indiana Jones played by Arnold Shwartzenneger with a bit of Omenesque religious overtones thrown in, except Van Damm has only a tenth of Arnie's acting ability. As a backdrop Israel looks very pretty but for most of the cast, including Van Damm, English seems to be their second language which when mixed with a plodding script, not so special effects, tedious kick boxing etc. makes for a very dull way to spend a few hours.SPOILERAs obviously plundered from Goldfinger the climax of the plot involves preventing a bomb from exploding, you can tell it's a bomb because it bleeps, has lots of wires and a very prominent red seven segment LED readout which counts down to zero - they all do don't they? Except in this case he manages to stop the count at guess what.... 007 seconds! Some would call this homage I call it a pitiful lack of imagination. ONE TO AVOID
Van Damme has a comic touch.
posted on 30 Jun 2007The Story: Rudy, a skilled thief dealing in priceless artefacts, travels to Israel to search for his father, who went missing while writing a book on an obscure religious sect. Wanted by the local police, Rudy discovers that members of the sect, known as the Army of God, plan to unleash World War 3 by bombing a Muslim shrine.I wasn't expecting much when I sat down to watch this third collaboration between Jean-Claude Van Damme & director Sheldon Lettich. Together the two have previously made "Lionheart", where Van Damme played a deserter looking after his brother's family by competing in illegal fights, & "Double Impact", in which Van Damme played twin brothers out for revenge.Like I said, I wasn't expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised. For once, Van Damme gives a good performance. It helped that he co-wrote the script, since he injects some comedy into his role. Whether he is stealing Faberge eggs, making gags while being asked about his job by border police or escaping them while dressed in ultra-conservative clothing, the jokes fly thick & fast. Charlton Heston appears in all of one scene yet receives top billing on the sleeve of the DVD. The action scenes are expertly handled, with a decent car chase & some good fight scenes.
Another great Van Damme film!
posted on 04 Jun 2007"The Order" just happens to be another great film from Jean-Claude Van Damme. He's cool in this movie. I like the action in this. But, there's only two problems with movie.1. Charlton Heston's only in this movie for about 10 minutes, then, he gets killed.2. This is JCVD's fourth direct-to-video film (the other three are "Legionnaire," "Desert Heat," and "Replicant"). But, other than that, this movie is fun. I'll recommend this movie to anyone. And, also, stick around after the movie, there are outtakes that are funny.A+ ****** (out of ****** stars) 13/13
i actually liked it!
posted on 24 Feb 2007I heard many bad reviews on this film, but i decided to "blind buy" it on DVD anyways (only five bucks).The story is cheesy, but different than the usual van damme fare. The setting was great, and some of the locations that the makers shot at were amazing to see. The action was great as well, and there were plenty of fight scenes to keep us van damme fans satisfied. after all, the fight scenes are what van damme fans are looking for in the first place, right? the fighting was well done, and van damme gives you all the classic kicks you can think of. For a DTV van damme action flick, you can do MUCH worse. I put in the movie expecting nothing, but after it ended, i had a smile.RATING: 7/10
Pretty good fun really.
posted on 03 Oct 2006The Order starts in the Ukraine where playboy thief Rudy Cafmeyer (co-writer Jean-Claude Van Damme) steals a rare Faberche egg, cut to New York where Rudy calls home & where he tries to set up a deal to sell the egg. While there Rudy's father Professor Oscar Cafmeyer (Vernon Dobtcheff) tries to contact him to tell him something important about one of his recent finds but Rudy isn't really interested. Then suddenly Oscar goes missing with the artifact & the police accuse him of stealing which Rudy doesn't believe, Rudy finds out that his father flew to Jerusalem & is now missing. Rudy flies out there himself & quickly finds himself involved a plot to starts a religious war using ancient writings found by his father who is in great danger...This Arubian American co-production was directed by Sheldon Lettich & one has to say that I thought The Order was a really fun, action packed romp that is hard to take seriously but provides good undemanding entertainment. I must admit I quite like JCVD, sure he has made some stinkers but when compared to the likes of other washed up action stars like Steven Seagal, Wesley Snipes or Chuck Norris his films continue to be alright & he always seems to at least try. Here for The Order JCVD teams up with Sheldon Lettich again after the pair made Lionheart (1990) & Double Impact (1991) together a decade or so earlier & to my eyes there was more to The Order than the usual mid range action film, the tone is light hearted & the action is both memorable & varied throughout. The script tries to be different as it concerns an ancient religious cult, treasure, plans to start a war & plenty of over-the-top action set pieces. While watching The Order I sat thinking it was some sort of crazy cross between an Indiana Jones film & a James Bond flick if you can imagine such a thing! The character's are OK & the dialogue is alright although JCVD's one-liners seem to be in short supply here. The Order isn't deep or meaningful & it doesn't try to say anything of a political or social relevance, no The Order tries to entertain for 90 odd minutes & I personally think it does a fine job.The one area where The Order excels is in the action department, there's the expected martial arts fights, there's some silly chase scenes across rooftops, there's a car chase, an impressive action scene set on an airport runway with JCVD driving one of the luggage carrier things as planes whizz past left & right, there are explosions, shoot-outs & all manner of gravity defying leaps, jumps & various other stunts. The violence is fairly slapstick & while it can be violent at times it's never sadistic or excessive. Apparently Steven Seagal was set to star in this but dropped out to be replaced by JCVD which is ironic since Seagal hasn't made a decent in years & this was his opportunity which he blew.With a supposed budget of about $25,000,000 The Order looks like that money was spent on on it as the action scenes are suitably big & it really was shot at least partly in Jerusalem in Israel so the scenery is quite nice. Despite near top billing villain Brian Thompson gets about five minutes of screen time while the late screen legend Charlton Heston gets about two minutes.The Order is a fun light hearted action film romp cross between an Indiana Jones & James Bond film with JCVD as the lead hero, doesn't sound too promising does it? Well, it's a lot better than you may think & I thought it was well worth 90 minutes of my time & attention.
How Low Can You Go?
posted on 22 Aug 2006Terrible movie has Van Damme in Israel as a cross between Indiana Jones and a Universal Soldier to save his father from the hands of a cult, set out to destroy about every religion on this planet. Van Damme should stay far away from movies like this who actually have a story in them (well, I'm sure that was the purpose anyway), for the simple fact that... he can't act. Stay with the knuckles and the muscles, Van Damme. Add the terrible script, boring camera-work and a beyond stupidity countdown sequence (only Bond can get away with that, folks) and you got your stinker right there. Even Charlton Heston (in a very small part) can't save this one from going down... The only thing to enjoy was it's title, 'Jihad Warrior', until they changed that as well into the boring 'The Order'. Please, for your own sake, stay away from this movie. 2/10.
Even straight to video, flatters this disaster!
posted on 18 Aug 2006I should point out that as a family we have every Van Damme Movie in our library save RUE BARBERE and THIS! After a democratic family vote it was almost unanimous we don't wreck up the memory of the other 20 odd with this apology for a movie. Although only 41 when he made this, he looks way older. At least a decade worse than in REPLICANT his prior film and an absolute classic besides this! REPLICANT was actually a decent movie! Here, JCVD has clearly decided that if he was on the way OUT in terms of box office clout, then he would sign off big time as either INDIANA JONES, SCARAMOUCHE, ERROL FLYNN or JACKIE CHAN...all of which he attempts to hand us here. What he ends up with is nearer Buster Keaton! THE QUEST was bad....but this is a totally misfired, under-achiever of an action flick and the worst thing Sheldon Lettich has ever lent his name too.Having said all that though and acknowledging how sad in some ways it is to see Charlton Heston (77 when he made this) prostituting his art here, It was still good to see him working...however reluctantly. Bear in mind also that he IS 77 here and with 42 years having passed since BEN HUR still much the same ...just a few wrinkles. OK... a lot of wrinkles. He is given way too little screen time however.Flimsiest of plot lines as JCVD searches for his father in some quite good looking Israeli locations. The fight scenes are cut and spliced to cover up Van Dumb's fading martial arts talents but are reasonable enough in the wash-up, if you don't look too closely.But what one is left with is a shell of a movie, a cinematic experience way less than the sum of its parts....and as for Ben Cross? he needs a role THIS badly?
Not good enough
posted on 08 Aug 2006Hey, I can enjoy an action movie and do now and then. It can be great fun just leaning back and watch the badguys getting a well deserved spanking.But the Order has been judged and found lacking. Van Dammes fighting is ok but neither good nor spectacular (though I'm in no way competent to judge martial arts, just what I find exciting), and the plot isn't very good, and thats with the expectations you'd put on a film like this. The Quest and Double Team are much better. So all in all, this is for Van Damme fans. The rest of us better see another film.
Disappointing
posted on 14 Apr 2006I like movies featuring Van Damme, but this was his worst performance that I've seen. The film "benefited" from poor directing and a weak scenario. Anyway, the opening and ending music is nice, so if you don't like the movie, you can at least keep (part of) the audio track :-)
Fallinf Flat!
posted on 04 Apr 2006From the director of A.W.O.L, Double Impact and The Last Warrior comes a picture that falls flat on its face and turns out to be a forgettable movie due to various reasons.The Order starts in 1099 A.D. and narrates the story of a warrior who lived to unite Christians, Jews and Muslims who had been fighting among themselves in the name of religion. This warrior formed an 'Order' comprising these religions and his disciples undertook to spread the word of peace. The warrior composed a code of ethics for his disciples to follow, of which the last chapter goes missing.Fast forward to the present time where Rudy (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is a common-day thief. When news of his father who has gone missing, reaches him, he goes to Tel Aviv on a lead, where he joins forces with Dalia (the adorable Sofia Milos) and sets on a mission to track his father. With the help of his martial-arts expertise, Rudy finally succeeds in locating his old man but discovers that the kidnapping was actually held to drag Rudy to the city.Van Damme's action is the only salvation in thethe movie where the pace is fast. Also starring Charlton Heston, as the vile Professor Finley. Overall, The Order is a movie fit for a single watch and tends to turn off interest sporadically.
Pure, unadulturated crap.
posted on 15 Dec 2005Not sure WHAT movie that IMDB's reviewer was watching; but, this movie rises to an entirely new level of suck. As a martial artist and martial arts movie afficianado; I was horrified at what will turn out to be one of Van Damme's worst movies. Totally missing the raw power of Bloodsport; filled with vague religious references and a horrid attempt at a plot-line. Van Damme, in the future, should stick to high kicks and his trademark splits(sadly missing in this movie). Female viewers will even be more disappointed as this movie is even missing the usual gratuitous shot of Jean-Claude's naked behind. This is akin to a porn movie attempting to have a serious plot. Just stick to what you do best and forget about trying to win an Oscar. Watch it if you're drunk and bored; but, if you want some decent martial arts eye-candy; pick up a Steven Segal flick and watch for the broken elbows.
Worse than the Worst Israeli Movies
posted on 25 Nov 2005I am no fan of Van Damme movies. Excepting this one, I have seen maybe just another one, when my kids were younger, and tried to avoid the rest. I did not do it with 'The Order', and I regret it. The movie is a combination of fight and Indiana Jones movies, but is almost terrible in any aspect - story, acting, cinematography. It is that boring that I almost fell asleep in the final ten minutes, when I was supposed to jump of excitment waiting for the outcome. It's funny, but this movie - filmed in Israel, and using some Israeli cast - succeeds to be worse that the worst Israeli movies. 3/10 on my personal scale. AVOID!
the man
posted on 11 Feb 2009Van Damme is the man and this movie is proof of that. A very well produced movie with excellent action. i met Van Damme some time ago and have been enthralled with his work ever since. if you like action pick up a copy youll love it.