ABSOLUTE DOMINION Review: Lexi Alexander’s Middling Martial Arts Tourno Thriller

Absolute Dominion opens in theaters and digital beginning May 9 from Giant Pictures.

Director Lexi Alexander hasn’t made a movie in a long time. She has helmed some notable television shows in the years since making headway with films like Green Street and Marvel adaptation Punisher: War Zone, through which she’s managed to build a cult following. Nowadays though, she can be seen touting her latest and long-awaited film effort, Absolute Dominion, which is finally getting released this week through Giant Pictures after hitting a stalemate a few years earlier with Netflix and Blumhouse.

Alexander, a martial artist herself, directs from her own script for a cast led by German breakout Désiré Mia who shepherds a story set in a future dystopia riddled by world war between religions. Patton Oswalt plays Fix, an overnight viral video star who gets elevated as host of the very tournament he coined, proffering all religions a chance to vet their own combatants for a chance to represent their faiths on the world stage: a fortified arena established on Shalom Island.

Mia plays one such fighter known as Sagan, a genetically born-and-bred athlete groomed to represent a humanistic organization for the arena, backed by his scientist father, Jehuda (Alex Winter). While Sagan’s presumed faith ultimately makes him a target by rivaling competitors, some of whom are mysteriously killed in the early hours of the wild card tournament, what remains to be seen is the mystery behind Sagan’s own afflictions, and whether or not they’ll determine the consequences of his victory or defeat.

I was a little apprehensive given the waiting period in terms of how this film would deliver. Admittedly, the trailer didn’t look very enticing to me, and I was apprehensive about watching at first. Considering the work of the team behind the action shepherded by stunt coordinator Phillip Tan, I was intrigued to see what he could deliver to this medium under Alexander’s direction. To this, it definitely doesn’t look or feel like a Netflix or Blumhouse production – which isn’t to omit some of their own per-film flaws in their respects.

Assembling a splotchy mix of CG and green screen to its tambre of visible low-budget production ilk, Alexander combines 90s action aesthetics and concurrent genre-similar faves that suggest an effort to play to young-adult fanbases. Shoring up the ballyhoo for the tournament is co-star Alok Vaid-Menon, harnessing his best Effie Trinket in the role of extravagantly fashionable tournament emcee, Ceylon, with Julie Ann Emery as Divergent‘s prickly Jeanine-like role in Commander Zimmer who, in no short order, is out to put an end to Sagan’s winning streak.

Going forward, the film’s push to conjole YA audiences is outmeasured only by its adherence to a more veiled faith-based narrative. Rumors fleshed out of the inner walls of the tournament’s residency are thrust post-haste into the stratosphere with word that Sagan actually believes in God, something that occurs when he seemingly goes catatonic and falls into a daze at times even during matches.

Several of these kinds of anomalies occur, and they eventually add up to one thing in Zimmer’s mind, compelling her to frame him as a messianic threat to the world’s religious order. It’s a lot to unpack but it’s not too difficult in the progression of things as far as the story goes. Really, what does make Absolute Dominion so abysmal to watch, in large part, is how prosaic and bland it all looks and feels for most of the runtime.

I did get the most out of seeing Mia share the screen with Andy Allo, who made her TV debut as a cohost on a beloved G4TV program called “Attack Of The Show.” She’s elevated herself immensely over the years as a well-rounded actress and entertainer with increasing credits to boot, here in Alexander’s movie as Naya, one of the facility’s many highly-trained personal protection officers each assigned to protect a fighter for the torunament’s duration. I also liked seeing the necessary depth added to the mix with the role of Sagan’s mother, Sitara, played by Olunike Adeliyi, only I wish it were more balanced and fleshed out between some of the other pertinent aspects of the film.

The action does look plentiful for most of the way with Mia and the featured tourno contestants putting the work in, including co-stars Mike Chaturantabut, Fabiano Viett, and Junes Zahdi. I especially admire Mia for the preparation he underwent to look as good as he possibly could for this film, and I certainly hope this won’t be his last. Camerawork is largely simplistic and consistent with its stock and doesn’t try to accomplish too much, which is more than I can say for a few spells in slow-mo editing.

Collectively, Absolute Dominion is a pretty lowbrow presentation that doesn’t do enough to look like anything more than a tonally dissonant made-for-TV spectacle, while aiming for fanservice adequacy that falls flat. I have more faith in its screenfighting players, though, especially Mia. There’s a potential action star in him, with plenty of room for improvement with the right direction, but while Absolute Dominion is worth a curious rental with a few highs to spark interest, it’s not a keeper.