'Warrior' has grand ambitions

Does any mixed martial arts flick need to be nearly 2 1/2 hours long? Not if it's the usual action cheapie, but "Warrior" has grander ambitions. It wants to be not just the "Rocky" but the "Moby-Dick" of mixed martial arts movies, and even cites that novel repeatedly. Amazingly, it almost succeeds.

The story of two estranged brothers fighting in the same tournament -- grandiloquently named Sparta -- "Warrior" can't escape the cliches built into its genre. But director and co-writer Gavin O'Connor (raised in Huntington) makes it fresh with working-class realism and wisely underplayed dialogue. What's more, "Warrior" is blessed with three astounding, Oscar-caliber performances.

Joel Edgerton ("Animal Kingdom") is Brendan Conlon, a one-time cage fighter now teaching high-school physics, much to the relief of his wife, Tess (Jennifer Morrison). When their Pittsburgh home goes into foreclosure -- Edgerton's desperate scene at a banker's desk is beautifully played -- Brendan considers Sparta. "You got a better shot at starting a boy band," says Brendan's old trainer (Frank Campana), who of course trains him anyway.

Meantime, Brendan's brother, Tommy (Tom Hardy, "Inception"), returns from Iraq with a dark secret and a thirst for violence. He's training with their father, Paddy (Nick Nolte), but it's an unhappy reunion: Though sober now, Paddy was once an abusive drunk. The scenes between these three damaged men are so emotionally ferocious they can be hard to watch. Hardy nearly leaps off the screen, and Nolte, as a father drowning in regrets, is utterly heartbreaking.

"Warrior" clearly wants to legitimize mixed martial arts, a populist sport still banned in New York and other states. It lacks the visual poetry of boxing, but the aptly named Sparta does provide a brutally thrilling finale. One problem: The overcomplicated story lacks a meaningful resolution. The victor is clear, but who was our Ahab and what was his whale? In the end, "Warrior" lands its most powerful blows outside the cage.

PLOT Two brothers compete in a mixed martial arts tournament. RATING PG-13 (violence, language, adult themes)

CAST Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Morrison

LENGTH 2:19

PLAYING AT Area theaters

BOTTOM LINE Not a masterpiece, but the astounding, Oscar-caliber performances will make it worth your while.