It's been a long road for The Order. Originally titled The Sin Eaters, this religious thriller had actually been completed for quite sometime. After months of schedule shuffling, the movie has finally seen the light of day, although it was not screened for critics. This is usually a bad sign and often indicates the studio hasn't much faith in the finished product.

In The Order, Heath Ledger plays a Catholic priest with a world of problems including an inner struggle dealing with his position in the church. These emotional problems pale in comparison to the bizarre, supernatural occurrences that begin to take place around him.

This thriller was written and directed by Oscar winning screenwriter Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential). This talented writer has shown a knack for directing with efforts such as the underrated Payback (I credit him with this one even if he was fired towards the end of production), and the energetic Knight's Tale. With The Order, Helgeland has reassembled most of his Knight's Tale cast, but rest assured, this is no sequel to the rock n' roll jousting film. This is an entirely different beast.

The Order is hit and miss. As a religious thriller, it fails to grab the audience and intrigue the way movies such as The Exorcist, The Omen, and
Rosemary's Baby do. On the other hand, this picture is far more gripping than the likes of End of Days, Stigmata, Lost Souls and Bless the Child.

Helgeland should be commended for not shying away from controversial subject matter. He does take stabs at the Catholic Church, and sometimes, he goes a tad far, but in the end, other films have gone farther. The Order is more of a supernatural thriller than a church bashing session, and this is established early on. Which probably explains why the Catholic church hasn't been as quick to protest this picture as they did with the brilliant Last Temptation of Christ and the hilariously provocative Dogma.

Helgeland also wrote the screenplay, and while there are certainly moments of stilted dialogue, some of the film has a Shakespearean tone, especially when it comes to the relationship between Heath Ledger and Shannyn Sossamon.
This keeps the movie from turning into a cinematic can of cheese whiz.

No supernatural thriller would be complete without special effects and The Order does feature some, though they're not all that special. In fact, if anything, they take away from the movie's stronger attributes - which include moody atmosphere and some pretty decent acting, particularly by Heath Ledger. His inner battle is convincing and only when he is confronted by tragedy does this actor slightly falter.

Of Helgeland's directing efforts, this is clearly my least favorite. The Order lacks focus, and it never really manages to scare. It is, however, an
interesting character study with some interesting insight into the Catholic Church. I should also mention that the ending, be it rather abrupt, is
satisfying.