Plot: A relaxing trip to the woods turns deadly when a vicious killer declares open season on the members of a hunting party.
One of my favourite genres of action is when a group of people are trying to survive in the wilderness while also being pursued by either a killer animal or human. In the case of Dominion, the villain takes the form of the late, great Brion James who plays the somewhat tragic Lynwood.
He lives in the wilderness after his son gets killed and takes out anyone who enters his domain. It’s almost like a slasher movie with action in it, but this is a really entertaining movie with impressive performances by all and although it doesn’t have any massive set-pieces there’s enough tense moments and a climactic fight scene to keep things moving.
Brion James always made for a menacing antagonist, and I think Linwood is one of his less appreciated characters. Any chance of sympathy is rapidly lost here as grief has clearly driven him insane.
He may have met his match when he comes across a group of hunters led by Harris (Brad Johnson) who aren’t going down without a fight. The supporting cast includes Tim Thomerson and Glenn Morshower and it’s nice to see him playing something other than a military leader which he seems to get typecast as a lot in the 90’s. In this his character Lance is the cowardly one who ends up panicking and crying when Lynwood attacks them.
Brad Johnson was taken from us far too soon when he passed away in 2022; I always thought he deserved to be a bigger star and he had a similar presence to Tom Berenger. He is well cast in this, and Harris is a true hero who will do anything for his friends. He ends up in the crosshairs of another group of hunters who mistake him for Linwood, which only adds to his problems.
I was a little disappointed that it keeps things open for a sequel as Linwood deserved a proper sendoff, but this is still a well-paced and tense film.
Overall, Dominion deserves more love as it has a great cast and an engaging concept with enough action and kills to keep things moving along at a brisk pace.