Dredd (2012)

Walk into any comic book shop in America, and you'll notice that ninety percent of the inventory is dedicated to superheroes. Nearly all of these heroes are, for all intents and purposes, vigilantes that operate outside the law. But take a look at some British comics and you'll see a crimefighter that is the law. That character is Judge Dredd, the star of the sci-fi anthology comic 2000 AD. Judge Dredd debuted in 2000 AD's second issue in 1977, continuing to appear in its pages to this day as the book's most popular character.

Hollywood eventually took notice of Judge Dredd's success and turned him into a movie in 1995. Despite featuring Sylvester Stallone as the titular lawman, the movie flopped and is still viewed as a huge disappointment to this day. But flash forward seventeen years later, to this past weekend when Judge Dredd finally earned his second chance at cinematic glory. The new flick, titled simply Dredd, hit theaters around the world to wide critical acclaim. And you know what? Those critics are right; it's an awesome flick.

Welcome to a future where the world is a really crummy place to be. Most of the United States is an irradiated wasteland due to a nuclear war, and the majority of the country's 800 million residents now reside in "Mega-City One." A sprawling metropolis stretching from Boston to Washington, DC, Mega-City One is a violent hellhole where 17,000 crimes are reported a day. But combating the criminal element are the Judges, a fraternity of police officers given the power to arrest, convict, and pass sentencing on the spot.

The movie follows a day in the life of the hard-nosed Judge Dredd (Karl Urban), who has been tasked with assessing struggling rookie Judge Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) and determining if she's fit to wear her badge. But what begins as a seemingly routine day in the field goes downhill quickly. After responding to a call about a triple-homicide at the massive Peach Trees apartment complex, Dredd and Anderson discover that the murders are connected to the sadistic drug lord Madeline "Ma-Ma" Madrigal (Lena Headey). Soon finding themselves trapped inside Peach Trees, the two Judges must fight their way up 200 stories of angry gang members if they're to bring Ma-Ma to justice.

I honestly thought that nothing would be able to beat out The Expendables 2 for the title of "best action movie of 2012." But then I saw Dredd and had my mind completely blown. Dredd is not only the best pure action movie I've seen all year, but one of the best I've seen in the last few years. I had high hopes for the movie going in, but I'm still astonished by how truly awesome it is. Anyone who calls themselves even a casual fan of the action genre needs to drop what they're doing and make a mad dash to the movie theater and see Dredd, because it's well worth the time and money.

Sitting in the director's chair is Pete Travis, who I heard had the movie taken away from him during the editing process. It's because of that that I'm not sure how much of the final product is his ultimate vision, but from what I saw, Travis did a hell of a job. The movie is an intense experience all the way through, never once letting up even in the moments it allows the viewers to catch their breath for a second. Every scene is exciting to watch, keeping one engrossed in what's happening the entire time. Travis also never resorts to that annoying quick-edited shaky-cam crap, instead letting us see everything that goes down. His repeated use of slow-motion also works in the movie's favor, and actually appears only when it's absolutely necessary (i.e. when characters are high on the "Slow-Mo" drug).

And although I'm not sure how much of the movie was shot natively in the format and how much was converted in post-production, the 3D effects were pulled off with quite a bit of success. Some scenes looked a little flat, but for the most part, the 3D is really good. It really helped to capture the massive size and scope of Mega-City One and the Peach Trees building. Travis even plays with it a little bit, making it look like some things are trying to physically escape the boundaries of the screen beyond just the typical 3D "pop at the viewer" thing.

But let's continue onwards to the screenplay, written by 28 Days Later scribe Alex Garland. And in great action movie tradition, the script has practically no plot, some choice one-liners, a little bit of comic relief, and a hero that kicks ass and takes names. I honestly can't compare what Garland's given to Judge Dredd's comics counterpart, as I've sadly only ever read two issues of 2000 AD, but I can tell you that Garland has crafted something that makes me want to read the comic. Garland's Judge Dredd is a total hardass, the kind of cop that would walk into a room, announce that everyone is under arrest, and beat the everloving crap out of anybody who even looks at him funny. That's a comic book character whose books I would read all the time, and an action movie that I'd want to see get a hundred sequels.

And speaking of action heroes, Karl Urban is amazing as the titular Judge. Urban forgoes the over-the-top hammy performance that Sylvester Stallone brought to the character, instead opting for something a little more deadpan. He speaks with a growl that puts Christian Bale's Batman to shame, and never comes across as being anything less than a badass. His Dredd is the epitome of confidence and self-assurance. When he announces that he is the law, you believe him. You can see that he'll never, ever in a million years stop fighting crime and bringing law to the lawless. Urban's Dredd is like somebody combined Batman and the Terminator, and it's so much fun to see him play the part.

I can also say the same about Lena Headey, who plays our resident villain. Headey is great in her role, her voice never rising above a purr despite her vicious, bloodthirsty demeanor. She jumps wholeheartedly into the role and makes Ma-Ma as awesome a villain as Urban is a hero. And while she doesn't get to play a total badass like Urban and Headey, I thought Olivia Thirlby still did a fine job too. Her character is a psychic who is unsure of herself and her role among the Judges, and as such is the only character to get any development during the movie. Thirlby makes it believable, bringing a level of vulnerability and heart to the movie. I liked her performance a lot, and I hope she gets more work based on it.

I hated hearing that Dredd tanked at the box office last weekend, because this is the kind of movie that should be a really big hit. And it probably would have been too had Stallone's version of Judge Dredd not had such a terrible reputation. Dredd's lack of box office success means we sadly probably never will see a sequel, which is a real shame. I want to see more of Judge Dredd's adventures through Mega-City One and the Cursed Earth. But even if there never is a sequel, at least there exists a Dredd movie that puts that 1995 disaster to shame. Go see Dredd in theaters while you still can, because it really should be seen, period.

Final Rating: ****