WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for The Order.
The ending of the true story crime thriller The Order shows the demise of Bob Matthews, the leader of the titular neo-Nazi domestic terrorist group. Jude Law and Nicolas Hoult lead the talented cast of The Order, which also features performances by Tye Sheridan (X-Men: Apocalypse) and Marc Maron (Joker). Law plays FBI agent Terry Husk who, with the help of an ambitious rural cop named Jamie Bowen (Sheridan), uncovers a series of connected acts of domestic terror during the mid-1980s in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Order opened to good reviews, earning an 89% on Rotten Tomatoes.
As stated in the film’s opening credits, The Order is based on a true story, which was previously chronicled in the 1990 book The Silent Brotherhood by Gary Gerhardt and Kevin Flynn. Justin Kurzel (Macbeth) directed the film based on an adapted screenplay written by Oscar nominee Zach Baylin (King Richard). As Hoult’s Bob Matthews continues his bouts of domestic terrorism by robbing banks and bombing synagogues, Law’s Husk and the FBI close in on him after identifying Tony Torres. Torres was the Aryan Brotherhood member who purchased the weapons for a Brink’s armored car heist in which Matthews and his associates stole $3.6 million.
Why Terry & Bob Don’t Shoot Each Other In The Burning House
Bob seems to like Terry for some reason
One of the most stunning aspects of The Order’s ending is why Terry runs into the burning house to confront Bob face to face. What’s even more surprising is that when Terry has a shot on him he doesn’t take it. The same goes for Bob, who opts out of killing Terry on three separate occasions throughout the film.
As the flames burn Bob’s safe house down from flares set off by a SWAT team, Bob closes the door and gets into the bathtub with a gas mask on, where he ultimately dies. There seems to be a strange unspoken connection between Terry and Bob which prevents either of them from taking a shot at the other. Terry does end up firing after Bob closes the door but runs out of the house to save himself, leaving Bob to burn.
Bob Matthew’s 6-Step Anarchist Plan Explained
Step 6 is armed revolution or “the day of the rope”
Matthew adopts the 6-step plan toward revolution that was introduced in the banned novel The Turner Diaries, which was written in 1978 by white nationalist William Luther Pierce. After enacting Step 5 by ordering the assassination of a Jewish radio host in Denver named Alan Burg, Matthews wanted to move on to the final step, which was an armed revolution against the United States government. At the safe house, he wrote a manifesto titled “A Declaration of War” which he was planning to send to the U.S. Congress, despite the fact that his organization’s numbers were dwindling. It’s clear that Matthews’ vision was not aligned with reality.
How Torres Got Out Of Jail – Did Bob Believe Him?
Bob wasn’t buying Torres’s innocent plea
The FBI was able to identify Tony Torres, a member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Mexican descent. Torres used his real name to purchase dozens of firearms and ammunition for Matthews’ heist of the Brink’s truck. One of those firearms was left at the scene of the crime, which is how Husk and his team were able to find and imprison Torres.
Terry interrogates Torres and eventually gets him to crack in a holding cell. Torres calls a phone number that provides him with extraction resources, which leads him back to Bob. Torres unconvincingly tells Bob that he didn’t tell the FBI anything about the heist or Alan Burg’s murder. Bob says Torres can trust him but it’s clear that he is going to return to his motel room to take him out when Terry turns up with the FBI.
Does Terry Blame Himself For Jamie’s Death?
It’s not the first time Terry got blood on his hands
Jamie tragically dies after getting shot and killed by Bob during a police pursuit. Rather than close in on Bob, Terry goes to Jamie to be with him as he dies. After Jamie dies, Terry immediately wipes his blood off of his hands with dusty gravel. Terry is a seasoned and scarred FBI agent who is evidently not as devastated by Jamie’s death as a normal person would be.
Earlier in the film, Terry tells Jamie about a woman he convinced to wear a wire while infiltrating a feared crime family in New York. That woman was brutally murdered. Jamie asks Terry why he told him that story, unaware how it would be an eerie foreshadowing of how Terry would lead Jamie to his own death. Terry could have looked out for Jamie and told him to stand down and leave the case to the FBI but he didn’t.
Who Killed Alan Burg
The Order member Bruce Pierce pulled the trigger
Matthews technically murdered Alan Burg, the Jewish radio host in Denver, by ordering his assassination as step 5 of his master plan. In reality, Bruce Pierce, a member of the Aryan Brotherhood working for Matthews, was identified as the triggerman. David Lane, another member of the hate group, was identified as the driver of the getaway car. According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, “Prosecutors had contended throughout the trial that Pierce was the triggerman in the June 1984 murder and that Lane drove the getaway car.” They were sentenced to life in prison in 1987. Pierce died in prison in 2010.
Why Terry’s Nose Keeps Bleeding
Terry takes medication for high blood pressure or anxiety
Terry’s nosebleeds throughout The Order when he gets overly worked up about the situation at hand. After he was nearly killed by Bob during a bank robbery, Terry’s nose bleeds at a bar as he struggles to regulate his understandably charged emotions. His nose bleeds again as he physically intimidates Torres in his holding cell. Terry blames the medication that he takes for his frequent nosebleeds. The medication is likely for high blood pressure, anxiety, PTSD, or something of that nature given his profession.
The Significance Of The Turner Diaries Book Explained
It has been the blueprint for several domestic terrorist acts
As explained before the end credits of The Order, The Turner Diaries is a banned novel that has laid out a blueprint for several acts of domestic terrorism ranging from the Unabomber bombings to the Insurrection on January 6, 2021. Matthews also used it as the framework for The Order and had plans to assassinate Henry Kissinger, the former United States Secretary of State. The novel follows a group of white supremacists who plan to overthrow the U.S. government. Matthews had clearly taken a literal interpretation of the novel, which was also spread as the doctrine of the Aryan Brotherhood by neo-Nazi Richard Butler.
The Real Meaning Of The Order’s Ending
Terry is on the right side of the law but is no saint
Terry Husk is clearly on the right side of history and the law in The Order but he is a deeply troubled protagonist, much more than the film displays. The real turning point in his character is watching him react to Jamie’s death, which he handles rather numbly without much shock or emotion. Terry then goes to his wife, who said he was afraid of Terry despite his badge, and can’t even muster up the strength to deliver the news. While the story is about the destructive power of hatred, Terry is certainly no saint.
Terry tries to get away from his past by going to Idaho in the first place but can’t seem to escape it. He tries to assimilate by going hunting, having an elk in his rifle sights twice but can’t take the shot. This implies that there is some good in Terry and he is not a killer by nature but one who was conditioned to kill by his job. The elk also represents Terry himself in a way, especially through the eyes of Bob, who doesn’t kill Terry despite having three chances to do so.
Bob likely doesn’t kill Terry because he sees something in him that he also sees in the broken men he recruited into his brotherhood. Alternatively, Bob could respect that Terry has fully dedicated his life to a cause even though he’s on the other side. Bob seems to be too fascinated by the walking contradiction that Terry is to pull the trigger on him in The Order.
8/10
The Order
A lone FBI agent, stationed in a small Idaho town, uncovers a disturbing connection between a series of violent bank robberies and a white supremacist group known as The Order. As the investigation deepens, the agent finds himself up against a dangerous domestic terror organization bent on sowing chaos across the Pacific Northwest.
- Director
- Justin Kurzel
- Release Date
- December 6, 2024
- Writers
- Zach Baylin , Kevin Flynn , Gary Gerhardt
- Cast
- Marc Maron , George Tchortov , Daniel Yip , Daniel Doheny , Sebastian Pigott , Jude Law , John Warkentin , Nicholas Hoult , Phillip Forest Lewitski , Vanessa Holmes , Bryan J. McHale , Rae Farrer , Carter Morrison , Odessa Young , Tye Sheridan , Philip Granger , Ryan Chandoul Wesley , Morgan Holmstrom , Bradley Stryker , Alison Oliver , Huxley Fisher , Jurnee Smollett , Randy Fisher , Geena Meszaros , Sean Tyler Foley , Victor Slezak , Matias Lucas , Sarah Haggeman , Dayna Lea Hoffman , Lenore Stillwell , Jason Long , Reid Fisher , Jerod Blake , Paul Wood , Shawn Markwardt , Judith Buchan , David LeReaney , Sally Bishop , Stafford Perry , Chantal Perron
- Character(s)
- Alan Berg , Gary Yarbrough , Engineer , Walter West , Bruce Pierce , Terry Husk , Hotel Receptionist , Bob Mathews , David Lane , Bank Teller #1 , Bank Manager , Bank Teller #2 , Spokane Cop , Zillah Craig , Jamie Bowen , Sheriff Loftlin , Willie Bowen , Kimmy Bowen , Sam Stinson , Debbie Mathews , Clinton Matthews , Joanne Carney , Bonnie Sue’s Father , Bonnie Sue West , Tony Bentley , Richard Butler , Tony Torres , Connie Pierce , Another Mother , Seattle Elderly Woman , Seattle Armed Guard #1 , Seattle Armed Guard #2 , Seattle Armored Truck Driver , Nazi Speaker , Brady’s Gun Store Clerk , Birdie Lane , Donald Lane , Brinks Guard , FBI Agent , Jean Craig
- Runtime
- 120 Minutes