I used to read the comics when I was young, and they were simple, straightforward shoot 'em ups with "Dredd" the epitome of tough, no-nonsense law enforcement in a futuristic environment where crime, violence, poverty and unemployment were pretty normal for many people. This time, Karl Urban takes the title role as the policeman/judge/jury type, and he and his rookie "Anderson" (Olivia Thirlby) investigate a few dead bodies in the lobby of an hundred-odd storey building controlled by the drug dealing matriarch "Ma-Ma" (Lena Headey) and her menacing henchmen. To begin with, they must find the killer and get out alive - but when some of his own kind arrive and turn against him - and his partner is captured - he sets out to settle this once and for all. Yep, the dialogue is shocking; the acting only little better (Headey is about as menacing as yesterday's creme brûlée) but that's not the point. It's meant to be a brutal action adventure - loads of pyrotechnics, attitude, gun-battles (with some great weapons, btw) that is just aimless fun. That's what is says on the tin, and that's what is does. Never any doubt about the ending, but the route is what it's all about - and for me, anyway, it's just 90 minutes of mindless escapism with a bit of mind-reading thrown in for good measure. Not everything can be Jane Austen - aim low and you ought not to be too disappointed.
