Dredd 3D reviews

Most of us might know the character of Judge Dredd from the underwhelming 1995 Stallone action flick of the same name, the character has a strong following amongst fans of the comic book '2000 A.D.' that started running sometime in the 70s. Using it's fascist futuristic society as a biting satirical social commentary, Judge Dredd has always been a strange and hyper-violent comic, something this movie understands way better than the 1995 one did.

In the future, nuclear war has wiped out much of humanity and radiation has rendered much of the land inhabitable. Populations are concentrated in large cities and the story of Dredd takes place in Mega City 1. The law of the land is laid down by an all powerful force know as the Judges who are judge, jury and executioner all rolled into one. The most hardened of the judges is Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) whose day in the movie begins with him being assigned a rookie judge, Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) with psychic powers beyond the likes anyone has seen before. Their first case involves a drug bust as Peach Trees, a 200 floor tower controlled by Mama (Lena Headey), a psychotic crime lord who controls the production and distribution of a new drug called Slow-Mo. The two judges arrest one of Mama's minions and are about to walk out when Mama puts the building under lockdown ordering a reward for whoever kills the judges. After some sneaking around, Dredd decides the best defence is offense and starts heading up floor by floor trying to get to Mama.

The biggest hurdle 'Dredd' will face is to please anyone who's watched this year's other 'Cops-Trapped-in-a-building-full-of-thugs' movie, 'The Raid: Redemption', a dazzling Indonesian action flick. Both movies have a similar premise but 'The Raid' wins out simply because of the amazingly choreographed fight sequences. If the action sequences in the Raid are like ballet, Dredd's action sequences are akin to a bull in a china shop. The movie is relentless and grim in it's pace and tone. The action hyper-violent and nonstop keeps coming at you with mind-numbing brutality.

The 3D again surprisingly is effective and the locations used seem authentic to the world of Dredd. The background score too works wonderfully.

The biggest setback for Dredd is the underwritten screenplay which lacks any meat to stretch out to its running length, thus rendering it as one long sequence of various action sequences one after the other. Lena Headey so effective in 'Game of Thrones' too suffers due to a poorly written character and offers little competition as the bad girl of the piece.

Karl Urban or rather his chin and voice completely own the role of Dredd and when he says “I am the Law” in true b-grade serious cheesiness, you'd believe him. Olivia Thirlby does a great job as the rookie, Anderson and is more or less the conscience of the film.

'Dredd' is true to the comics, knuckle-busting actioner that will effectively wipe out any memory of the 1995 disaster. It lacks a gripping story but more than makes up for that with a short running length and some decent action sequences. Fans of the comic book will particularly be delighted with this adaptation. I'd however watch it just for Karl Urban again, he IS Dredd!

I simply couldn't stand this film. There were many instances where the visuals tricked me into believing I'm watching a good film but the overall experience is so shamelessly appalling that it made me want to seek out some help for the filmmaker. It plays out more like a bad trip, a visual and cerebral rape. What I felt while watching this film was quite the opposite of fun. I don't mean to go as far as calling Dredd an assault on the senses but it's definitely an assault on something. Probably the intelligence.

A few scenes are the stuff of a beautiful nightmare and I would be lying if I didn't admit that I picked up my jaw from the floor a couple of times. A feat like this was previously achieved by the Zack Snyder film - 300 (2006). Both films have stunning visuals, especially the super slow motion. That's about it. Dredd 3D and 300 are shiny examples of what is going wrong with today's filmmaking. It caters directly to that part of the audience, which frequently speaks the colloquial phrase: "That was so awesome". Not that section which is looking for a profound experience. I'm aware that when you go for a film like Dredd you don't look for a profound experience, but you do look for fun. If this is fun then its definition is becoming more and more warped with each new generation of "movie buffs".

Dredd is based on the character in the 2000 A.D. comics. Set in a dystopian future, a bit too dystopian if you ask me, in Mega-City One which is on the American east coast. I can imagine someone who doesn't know who Judge Dredd or even what a judge is, getting lost and simply not caring for the film. What are these judges doing in this action movie? Well, two judges are locked in a 200-floor tower. Their only way out is up. Up is where the drug lord resides and she wants them destroyed. Classic video game material. But wait, when was Dredd supposed to be a video game movie anyway? What happened to it being a comic book movie?

Having said that, there are some things I did truly enjoy. The 3D is spectacular. Judge Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), the rookie, is the only character which boasts any amount of depth. There's a drug lord called Ma-Ma! How badass is that? Lena Heady plays her with unflinching menace. Most importantly, Karl Urban makes a very good Dredd. I'm sure the purists will like that the helmet never comes off. I just hope this was done in a different film.

Dredd will face numerous comparisons with a recent Indonesian film containing a similar premise, The Raid: Redemption. It was, quite frankly, a far more enjoyable and a much better film (not just in terms of action). This film also wishes it was giving homage to films like Robocop, Die Hard, Assault and Precinct 13 and even Escape from New York but it just doesn't. If each of these movies were to be dumbed down at the whim of a cinematic abuser, you would get Dredd 3D. The only thing going for this film is its stylistic choice. If I have to pick out just one visual (however screwed up it was) that made me gasp, (Spoiler alert) there is a scene where a body drops from a height and the face splashes onto the camera and slowly blood envelops the screen. (End of spoiler) Trust me, I can't describe this for you. You've got to see this for yourself. But wait, did I just end up recommending this film? I didn't want to. But now that I have, I urge you to be a better judge and not get manipulated by the tricks and see through this dreadful movie.

The 1990 film may have disappointed the comic book fans and I'm sure the 2012 update will impress them. But the fact that it will impress gamers (or even drug addicts) is exactly why I couldn't digest this film. For a lot of people, Judge Dredd was marred by Sylvester Stallone and Rob Schneider. Trust me, it was for me too. Stallone has never been my favorite actor around. But try singling out the scenes where Stallone and Urban speak the dialogue: "I am the law". If I were given an option to watch one of these films again, I would pick the original film without a hitch. Then probably watch Assault on Precinct 13 later. You would pick this one? "I knew you'd say that!"