Incendiary!
Dredd is directed by Pete Travis and written by Alex Garland. It stars Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Lena Headey and Wood Harris. Music is by Paul Leonard-Morgan and cinematography by Anthony Dod Mantle.
Review for 2D Version Only.
Sylvester Stallone' 1995 attempt at bringing Judge Dredd to the big screen was met with a critical mauling, both professionally and by serious fans of the 2000AD comic books from whence the character came. On its own terms it's a fun popcorn piece, but one that totally missed the fascist grime of the source. Here however, under the guidance of Travis and Garland, Dredd gets the picture the fans and the character deserves.
Plot is simple, we are in a dystopian future in a place known as Mega-City One. The only law and order are the Judges who are able to act as judge, jury and executioner. One such feared judge is Judge Dredd (Urban) and when he and his partner in training, Anderson (Thirlby), answer a call to a triple homicide at the multi storey slum tenement known as Peach Trees, they are locked in by crime boss Ma-Ma (Headey) and forced to defend themselves against practically everyone who resides there.
This is stripped down to the essence of what makes Judge Dredd such a beloved character in comic book lore. There's no need for backstories, love interests or comedy side-kicks, this is bad ass characters from either side of the law going at it full throttle. The action is unrelenting and explosive in its construction, bloody and brutal into the bargain as well.
Dredd the character is rightly kept to a basic level, he's a hard dude in a suit and helmet, with an arsenal of weapons upon his person and he delivers short sharp shock pieces of dialogue with gruff assertiveness. Anderson is a mutant of sorts, she can read minds, which superbly adds spice to this fight for survival narrative. Ma-Ma is a damaged villain, disgustingly menacing without histrionics, it's her calmness that's so terrifying.
At the core of the criminal activities fronted by Ma-Ma is a new drug called Slo-Mo, a drug that reduces the brain's perception to 1% of speed. This allows the makers to bring some dazzling effects into play whilst setting up some blood letting scenarios. The production design is top draw, where Mega-City One has a perfect totalitarianism sheen to it, which in turn is boosted by Dod Mantle's excellent colour lenses.
With Urban perfectly cast and his two lady co-stars also firing, Dredd is a thrilling action sci-fi movie. It doesn't push new boundaries and raise the bar per se, but it keeps the fires well and truly burning in the genre whilst appeasing the fans wholesale. 8/10