Dredd

I've been a Dredd fan for thirty years now, but I'm not about to give this movie adaptation of my favourite comic character a ridiculously high rating purely from some misguided sense of loyalty. Instead, I'm going to give it a deservingly high score because, quite simply, it is a very good film, one that successfully captures the essence of the 2000AD strip, delivering brutal action by the bucket-load, excellent central performances, and inspired direction, all enhanced by breathtaking state-of-the-art 3D special effects.

After the debacle that was Stallone's Judge Dredd (1995), the makers of this movie have clearly made their prime directive to please hardcore Dredd fans, and it shows: the screenplay, by Alex Garland, remains very faithful to the spirit of the comic, and in Karl Urban, we now have the perfect Dredd-all raspy voice and humourless grimace, it looks as though the character has jumped straight onto the screen from the pages of 2000AD (helmet intact). Similarly, it would be hard to imagine anyone more suitable than Olivia Thirlby as rookie Psi-Judge Anderson (and believe me, I've tried!).

Is Dredd 3D my 'ideal' Dredd movie? Not quite... made for a comparatively meagre budget of $45million, it would be hard pushed to live up to my impossibly high expectations (just realising the Mega-City One of my dreams would require way more money than it cost to make this entire film). That said, it is definitely a massive step in the right direction, and if it is the financial success that it genuinely deserves to be, who knows what treats await us in the future: The Cursed Earth, Judge Cal, Judge Death, The Apocalypse War.... I'm salivating like a Klegg just thinking about it.

** EDIT - 5th April 2021 ** Just watched Dredd again, this time without the benefit of 3D, and found it less impressive than I remembered. I was struck more than before by how poorly Mega City One is presented, with vehicles that look like they're from now instead the end of the 21st century. Little effort was spent in making the environment appear futuristic - things like computer keyboards and electric fans are still as they are today. Budget was clearly an issue, and it shows.

Also, the whole 'Wait' conversation doesn't work for me. The bad judge would've plugged Dredd in the head instead of allowing him to buy time.

I still love Urban's portrayal, and the violence is cool, but I really hope that if there is a next time, they make the film look more like the comics.

Old rating: 8/10 New rating: 6.5/10, rounded up to 7. It's still good, just not great.

A gritty ride that jumps right in & doesn't stop. It's simple & effectively meets its goals of hyper violent suspenseful crime content. The world building is brief but immersive with dull colors except for the gorgeously shot intoxication scenes.

In a dystopian future, the world is devastated. Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) is the last word in Law & Order within Mega-City One. Judge Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) is his junior partner. They are battling drug lord Ma-Ma (Lena Headey) who is operating out of a massive apartment block.

The previous version of Judge Dredd (1995) starring Sly is a campy affair. Consider that it had Rob Schneider in it. 'nuff said. This one brings us into the comics once again but this time, they drop the camp. It is well written probably because they had Alex Garland who also wrote 28 Days Later... and Sunshine among others. Karl Urban is not as imposing as Sly but he does a solid job. Most importantly, he's not impersonating Sly. Olivia Thirlby is great as a foil or conscience to Dredd. Their relationship is the heart of the movie. Lena Headey does a good job as the baddie. It's an interesting unusual choice. It's certainly not your average muscle bound villain.

I did have 2 problems. First, Slo-Mo happens too many times. The first couple of times are interesting. I'm sure it's cool 3D fun, but even that would get tiresome. It's a balancing act between pace and cool and the climax needs pace more than cool. Second problem is the ending. The final fight with Lena Headey is not as climatic as needed. It's a bit of a letdown. Overall, this is super-fun despite the minor problems.

Let me start by saying, I thoroughly enjoyed this film, as in my opinion, it did everything right. Sure, it had no real substance of a story line (hence the 8/10) but that didn't take much away from the film. The simplistic story also had its advantages, as more time could be dedicated to Dredd doing what Dredd does best, instead of messing around in lengthy conversations. Besides, a detailed emotional story might have made this film a flop, as the cold, ruthless character of Dredd would have been somewhat diminished if that had been the case.

So what made this film for me? Simple, the fact that they weren't afraid to make it an 18. This lends strong evidence to the argument that if you want to make an action film that raises the bar, it has to contain all of the shots that just aren't allowed in a 15 rated film. The drug, SLO- M0, that is used by the junkies in this film to slow their perception of time, allows for stunning, and brutal, scenes that also look great in 3D. The 18 rating also allowed for the director to create villains that you despise and you can understand why the other innocent characters fear them, which engages us as an audience.

The film's script is cheesy, but if you've seen the other Judge Dredd film, that'll hardly be a surprise. And I must admit that Karl Urban does a fantastic job of making the lines still sound good. And overall, the acting is good, which is a relief after seeing so many action films where even the main character can't act..

Overall, a great film. Possibly not the best film to watch on a first date, but if you know what you're getting yourself in for and just want some entertaining action, I really don't think Dredd will disappoint.

This definitely isn't one of those movies with a lot of character development, but its not your typical action flick either. This is a beautiful work of art with a lot of stylized violence, desolate alleys with shady characters and ill intentions. The grungy neon lights of a dystopian future, the scarlet blood and glimmering glass, the hauntingly beautiful slow motion, what makes this movie great is definitely the visual aspects.

Dredd himself is very one dimensional, forcedly so. Stern, analytical, gruff, his toughness masking a side of him the audience never actually gets to see. His character is described perfectly in the first few minutes by his new psychic apprentice, which is the last look you get inside of his head before its slammed shut. He is a man who takes his duty seriously to the point that it consumes him, defines him.

Ma-ma is sadistically brilliant. Her mob-style domination of peach tree creates a claustrophobic apprehension for a threat far too big to take on in a box far too small to escape. The terror by which she controls the people is believable and vicious. Whats lost in character development is regained by the subtle twisted moments and reactions to the threats imposed on each of the characters.

The psychic scenes were perhaps the most well done and paints a very nice psychological battle between the judge in training and her prisoner. I would've actually enjoyed more of these as they were very surreal and artistic. Its also cool to see the way she breaks him down even after he thinks he has the upper hand.

Slow mo, the drug this movie centers around, makes for some very awesome fight scenes on par with Sherlock Holmes 2: a Game of Shadows and the Matrix. The visual effects were very well executed and i myself being a visual effects artist, have only one complaint. At some points the blood was a bit oversaturated and toonish, which was likely in attempt to match the comic but draws away from a few scenes.