Retired relics smuggler Jean-Claude Van Damme must rescue his kidnapped father, curator Charlton Heston, and stop a fanatical religious sect from using stolen sacred scrolls to ignite World War III. Explosive action tale also stars Ben Cross and Sofia Milos. 89 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital 5.1; Subtitles: English, French; theatrical trailers.

Jean-Claude Van Damme may never have risen to the top ranks of action stars, but his movies have been consistently enjoyable--partly because they don't take themselves too seriously. In The Order, Van Damme plays a thief of religious artifacts whose archeologist father has found the lost scripture of a mysterious religious order. When the old man is kidnapped, Van Damme soon finds himself cruising around the twisty streets of Jerusalem, getting into dynamic kickboxing battles while disguised as a Hasidic Jew. With the help of a beautiful Israeli cop (Sofia Milos), Van Damme uncovers a plot within the religious order that leads to secret catacombs beneath the holy city. Silly? Perhaps, but directed with vitality and surprising wit. Van Damme is trim and energetic, Milos is engaging, and a cameo by Charlton Heston (!) only adds to the general atmosphere of spunky fun. --Bret Fetzer