Dredd

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.

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.

DREDD is the second adaptation of the cult comic book series Judge Dredd, following on from a poorly-received Stallone flick in the '90s (for the record, I thought that version was passable but weak in places, as is the case with a lot of mid-'90s cinema). This one's a lot more gutsy and compelling, thanks to the lean script and emphasis throughout on bloody action and adult entertainment. No pandering to the teenage crowd here.

Karl Urban, long since a favourite of mine (since his excellent turn as the Russian assassin in THE BOURNE SUPREMACY) headlines as Dredd, never taking his helmet off throughout the film. Thus he's reduced to acting via his chin and gravely voice, and the surprise is that it works, to a degree. The helmet serves to distance the viewer from warming to the character, but then that's the point. I did like him though, and enjoyed his totalitarian attitude towards keeping crime off the streets.

Many reviewers have commented on the movie's similarity in plot to the Indonesian action epic THE RAID, and it's clear the two films share plenty. However, I think there's space for both of them in the market; DREDD is an unashamed shoot-em-up while THE RAID is an unashamed martial arts movie. They cater to different markets, and both are equally good.

DREDD's grim, claustrophobic setting is a strong one (bringing to mind the likes of '80s nihilist cinema like TENEMENT and DEATH WISH 3) and the action never lets up from start to finish. The scene with the huge guns is the stand-out, of course, but there's plenty of good minor stuff along the way, where encounters between Dredd and various bad guys are well directed and choreographed. Lena Headey's villain is utterly imposing and my only disappointment was with the ultra-slow-motion sequences, which are a bit pretentious and overused; thankfully they virtually disappear once the novelty wears off. I watched the 3D version of this movie, and while it's not the most visually impressive 3D film I've seen, it does make the film feel more immersive as a whole.

The basic aim of Dredd is simple – it needs to be bold, true to the source material and full of juicy violence, enough to wipe out the memories of the notoriously poor Stallone attempt of 1995 that threw plenty of money at the screen without bothering to work on anything resembling a decent script.

The character of Judge Dredd, now entering his 35th year in UK comic 2000AD (they know it's 2012 - don't ask), isn't a complicated one. He is, as he is fond of stating, the law. The time is the future, and amidst the wasteland that is America there is a single, massive city with 800 million inhabitants, appropriately called Mega City One. It's quite the scumhole, and the only thing that stands between it and total chaos are the Judges, trained for years to be the ultimate in law enforcement, yet so outnumbered they can only handle 6% of the crimes committed. This, people, is as thin as the blue line gets.

The film is written by long time fan Alex Garland (28 Days later, Sunshine), and has had plenty of input from Dredd's creator (and still main writer even now) John Wagner. Filmed in South Africa on what passes for a tight budget these days (especially for Sci-Fi), it could be compared to District 9 in terms of the sheer effort put into it, with a result that is similarly impressive although aesthetically miles apart. Director Pete Travis (Endgame) does an excellent job, and between them they have turned in a film that will stand the test of time as a superior, adult action movie.

The premise is reasonably simple, something that works well as an introduction to what is, in the comics at least, a sprawling future world. Dredd is accompanied on patrol by rookie Judge Anderson, very well played by Olivia Thirlby, who is on the verge of failing her final assessment but is being given a second chance because of her powerful, and rare, psi abilities. A routine triple homicide (it's that sort of city) turns into a siege when they are trapped in a massive tower block by criminal nutjob Ma Ma (Lena Headey) and forced to fight their way out and stop her manufacturing the addictive new drug, Slo Mo. Obviously there's a bit more to it than that, but this is the basic set up and it works very well indeed, allowing for plenty of violence, some character development and no few explosions.

I can't write this review without focusing on Karl Urban, who has previously stood out for his excellent turn as Dr McCoy in the Star Trek revival. Not afraid to go through an entire movie with a helmet on, he is spot on as Dredd. He gives us an emotionless machine, a man who cares for nothing but the law, but a man you want to get behind and cheer on as he splats bad guys left right and centre. The humanity comes from Anderson, and it helps that Thirlby doesn't have to wear a helmet herself, with the handy excuse that it interferes with her psi abilities. Between them they give us the tired old wardog and the 21 year old rookie on the streets for the first time, and you sympathise with the life of a Mega City Judge.

Some people have criticized the apparent similarities between Dredd and the recent film The Raid: Redemption, in which Indonesian cops storm a tower block and much chop sockey ensues. To be honest, I was a little worried myself, but having seen both films I can happily confirm that they are nothing alike. Whilst The Raid is a pretty intense martial arts film which is rather dull between fights (although the fights are awesome), Dredd is a tight film all the way through, with the plot more than an excuse to go from fight to fight.

In conclusion, I can heartily recommend this film, in case you hadn't guessed. It's sort of like a cross between Robocop and Die Hard, all moderned up and with better music. It's no coincidence that those are two of the most kick ass action films ever, and Dredd borrows from the best, although as Robocop stole from Dredd in the first place it's more like recovering pinched property. The 3D is actually worth shelling out for, and there are some beautiful sequences where it comes into it's own, whilst the film itself is gritty and dirty, although not without a few lighter moments amidst the carnage. The humour in Dredd's comic strips comes from the city around him rather than his own actions, and here's hoping we'll see Alex Garland penning a sequel that allows us to wander through Dredd's world. Quite simply a superior action film, and whilst it's no masterpiece (then again, it's not supposed to be) it's as good as fans could ever have hoped. Here's to the sequels

I have no familiarity with the source material, but I can safely say that as an action flick, Dredd delivers. It has a simple premise, simple characters and some solid action. And sometimes that's all you need.

Performances are fine across the board, Karl Urban does a good job as the titular character, giving the character a good level of ruthless efficiency combined with slight hints of human decency. Olivia Thirlby as Anderson also does a good job. Both characters are simple with not much to speak of when it comes to development and while that does mean the action is the sole focus, I prefer action films to have some semblance of character arcs. The antagonist is serviceable, Lena Headey does a decent job.

As for the action, its pretty good. They did not hesitate to push the violence to extreme levels. The sequences are creative, gory and satisfying. There are some instances of CG looking a tad fake, but that can be excused due to some characters' perspectives being affected by a drug.

This film also does a decent amount of worldbuilding. It gives you just enough information to understand the premise and the system. This film definitely feels like it needed a bigger budget sequel but alas, we have none. Despite the plot being simple, there are definitely aspects that I wish were more developed and definitely odd moments of contrivance and convenience.

Overall, Dredd is a solid 90 minute thrill ride and a great way to just switch off and enjoy the violent spectacle, which the film succeeds at. Those wanting more substance may be left hanging, but those in for a fun time should definitely give this film a shot.