STAR RATINGS EXPLAINED
Unmissable
Excellent
Good
Poor
Tragic

POSTER ART

Click poster to enlarge

More posters to select

FILM DETAILS

Certificate 18

Cast Karl Urban Olivia Thirlby Lena Headey Wood Harris.

Directors Pete Travis.

Screenwriters Alex Garland.

Running Time 95 minutes

LATEST FILM REVIEWS Behind The Candelabra Iceman , The Before Midnight Everybody Has A Plan Easy Money 5 STAR REVIEWS My Neighbour Totoro Gatekeepers , The Stoker In The House Lincoln

Dredd
He is the law, apparently

Tweet

Plot
Judge Dredd (Urban), Mega-City One’s top law enforcer, is reluctantly paired with psychic rookie Anderson (Thirlby) as her assessor for the day – a day that quickly sees them trapped in Peach Trees, a 200-storey megablock, by psycho Ma-Ma (Headey), who, with her hordes of minions, is dealing in a new drug called Slo-mo. Their only way out: up.

Review

Browse more images »

Two long shadows fall over Dredd, the second attempt to get 2000AD’s gnarly, grizzled super-cop onto the big screen. One of them, as you might expect, is Danny Cannon’s 1995’s Judge Dredd, the Sylvester Stallone vehicle that looked the part, but misunderstood the fundamentals right down to the inclusion of Rob Schneider as comic relief.

The second, though, is somewhat unexpected. In an ideal world, we’d be able to see and assess films in a bubble, but this isn’t an ideal world. Just as it was virtually impossible to watch Prometheus without unbidden thoughts of Alien, so it goes with Dredd and The Raid, Gareth Evans’ blistering Indonesian action flick which, in a perfect storm of horrible timing, has virtually the same plot, right down to the chief baddie putting out a hit on the hero via building-wide intercom.

This wouldn’t be to Dredd’s detriment if The Raid hadn’t a) got there first and b) been the best action film in years. And so, as Dredd and Anderson tiptoe down dark corridors, where danger lurks around every corner, or bullet-bludgeon their way through Ma-Ma’s seemingly endless waves of expendable henchmen, it’s hard not to compare and contrast with Evans’ movie, where similar situations led to action that was vital, insanely violent and full of variety. Dredd retains the extraordinary violence (flesh pierces rippling bare flesh in loving slo-mo, a machine gun reduces a head to a pulp, and bodies spiral through 200 storeys before splatting), but the action is rather more circumspect and workmanlike – there are no dizzying camera moves, no sense of building momentum or mounting danger.

That, overall, Dredd manages to obliterate the memory of Judge Dredd (and to a lesser extent, The Raid) is largely attributable to one of the things it gets absolutely, incontrovertibly right: Dredd himself. John Wagner’s creation is a tricky one to represent on the big screen: dour, one-note, humourless, dedicated to upholding the law above all other things, he’s Dirty Harry wearing fascism like his gold badge. The obvious temptation is to judge the Judge and soften him, to make him glib, to introduce back story and a sense that there’s a living, breathing, caring, sharing human being under there.

Dredd’s director, Pete Travis, and screenwriter Alex Garland, the driving force behind the reboot, say “drokk that!”, and transplant Dredd straight from the comics onto the screen. This Dredd is a deadpan delight - he doesn’t grow as a person and he doesn’t crack wise. In fact, the movie generates its few laughs from his sheer intractability – a grunt here, a monosyllabic response there. It’s a role that has to be handled with care, and luckily Urban is excellent. Unlike Stallone, the helmet stays on (in a cute touch, we first see him from behind without the headgear) and, without recourse to his eyes, Urban is forced to give good lower head, leading with the manliest movie chin this side of Kirk Douglas, and growling his lines in an Eastwood-meets-Pazuzu rasp that just about manages to stay the right side of tough-guy parody.

With Dredd unchanging, and Lena Headey’s quietly chilling villainess, Ma-Ma, proving equally monomaniacal, the emotional arc is given to Thirlby, whose engaging Anderson has to grow up quickly as the bullets start flying.

The focus on a small core of characters (including, happily, The Wire’s Avon Barksdale, Wood Harris, as Headey’s right-hand dealer), and the decision to restrict the action to Peach Trees is a byproduct of Dredd’s relatively miniscule (for a comic-book adaptation) budget. Dredd doesn’t have the capital to do an enormous Dark Knight Rises-style denouement, with the big action set-piece, involving Ma-Ma firing a cannon even more dangerous to Dredd than Danny, coming halfway through. Impressively, though, it never looks bargain basement – the murky green/brown colour scheme, along with the brief opening in Mega-City One (Johannesburg with some CG enhancements), clearly show that this post-apocalyptic world is rundown, seedy, gone to pot.

And that murk allows Travis to escape occasionally into the (literal) Slo-mo sequences. The drug, which makes users perceive time at one per cent of its normal speed, isn’t just an excuse for Peckinpah apeing, but for genuinely surreal splashes of heightened colour that, thankfully, don’t outstay their welcome. The film’s use of 3D is often excellent (including the credits) and it really comes to life in the Slo-mo scenes – Headey’s introduction, swirling rainbow-coloured droplets of bath water around in a drug-induced haze, will make this – ironically - a stoner favourite. Hey, we’re not judging.

There’s certainly enough here, despite the clunky action and oppressively dour tone, to make the prospect of a sequel intriguing. With a bigger budget, Dredd could get to play in a bigger sandpit. There’s a whole Cursed Earth out there, just waiting to be explored. But, if it doesn’t come to that, this is an honourable attempt at giving an iconic character the adaptation he deserved. Just don’t double-bill it with The Raid.

Write Your Review
To write your review please login or register.

Your Reviews

Average user rating for Dredd

RE: What a Dredd movie should be

Found it somewhat claustrophobic and a little disappointing, dredd falls way short of Robocop. ... More

Posted by Willy Wood at 18:16, 08 March 2013 | Report This Post

What a Dredd movie should be

Frankly it was brilliant (it's a shame the cinema Gods gave The Raid the head start), and its great to see a Dredd movie where he keeps his helmet on, as he should. 5 stars for action, one of the greats in comic book adapations and well worth the wait to watch it on DVD (btw, being an 18 not a 15 another reason for it not doing aswell as it deserved to). It's just a shame Stallone's Dredd movie cursed this franchise slightly. ... More

Posted by gfish1 at 20:07, 05 February 2013 | Report This Post

What a Dredd movie should be

Frankly it was brilliant (it's a shame the cinema Gods gave The Raid the head start), and its great to see a Dredd movie where he keeps his helmet on, as he should. 5 stars for action, one of the greats in comic book adapations and well worth the wait to watch it on DVD (btw, being an 18 not a 15 another reason for it not doing aswell as it deserved to). It's just a shame Stallone's Dredd movie cursed this franchise slightly. ... More

Posted by gfish1 at 20:07, 05 February 2013 | Report This Post

RE: RE:

There is not going to be another cinema sequel...maybe a direct to DVD movie but that will be it. ... More

Posted by Rgirvan44 at 18:12, 03 February 2013 | Report This Post

RE: RE:

L: Cool Breeze L: theoriginalcynic I loved it! Much better than the Raid. Pleasantly surprised as my expectations were low. Bring on the sequel. mm.. about the sequel..ote] They're confident it will still happen. Fingers crossed for strong Blu-ray / DVD sales. ... More

Posted by theoriginalcynic at 21:37, 02 February 2013 | Report This Post

RE: RE:

L: theoriginalcynic I loved it! Much better than the Raid. Pleasantly surprised as my expectations were low. Bring on the sequel. mm.. about the sequel.. ... More

Posted by Cool Breeze at 20:42, 02 February 2013 | Report This Post

RE:

I loved it! Much better than the Raid. Pleasantly surprised as my expectations were low. Bring on the sequel. ... More

Posted by theoriginalcynic at 20:25, 02 February 2013 | Report This Post

I loved it! Much better than the Raid. Pleasantly surprised as my expectations were low. Bring on the sequel. ... More

Posted by theoriginalcynic at 20:23, 02 February 2013 | Report This Post

RE: I agree with the review wholeheartedly

Odd one this, it's hard to watch it without compring it to The Raid which is a bit unfair. Although they both have the same basic set up they are both trying to do different things. Dredd is an action movie, the Raid is a stripped bare adrenalin hit. Overall though it was a good movie that could do with a bigger budget sequel. Urban was great as Dredd and they got the realism/cartoon balance right with the uniform (bikes were a bit rubbish though). The only real dissapointme... More

Posted by blackduck at 13:21, 28 January 2013 | Report This Post

I agree with the review wholeheartedly

But I'm pushing my rating up to four stars for one reason - Karl Urban. He's amazing in this, truly he was born to play Dredd. The fact that Dredd is so unfunny, fascistic and stern makes him, at times, hilarious but it never spills over into parody or irony. Thought it was really well put together on a clearly tiny budget (by comparison with other 'comic book' movies') and making it gory, nasty and violent as hell is exactly what was needed. Really, REALLY hope they make another, if only to see... More

Posted by MusicLovesYou at 07:33, 24 January 2013 | Report This Post

DREDDFUL...

Not a chance this is definitely the way Dredd should be portrayed on screen as close a portrayal of the original character as you will probably be able to get and what is great for me about this version is that it is not an origin story but just a day in the life of a street judge and that is important because that is what separates it from most if not all of the anti-hero movies available and the fact that the anti climatic ending is a reflection of how a street judge would deal with a homicida... More

Posted by logan 5 at 16:53, 17 January 2013 | Report This Post

Not Jozi, Cape Town

Most of those exterior shots and the courtyard of Peach Trees was in fact filmed in Cape Town. ... More

Posted by Enzino at 08:39, 16 January 2013 | Report This Post

Empire gets Judged

Your low star rating for Dredd will go down with your 5 stars for AOTC in the anals of your review history. ... More

Posted by Normal Control at 00:05, 13 January 2013 | Report This Post

RE: Awesomeness

I hope Dredd is a smash on DVD cos it deserves a sequel. I applaud the makers for targeting an adult audience. Unfortunately the box office numbers will tell the moneymen that was a bad move. I re-watched it the other day and thoroughly enjoyed it again. ... More

Posted by CORLEONE at 09:55, 10 January 2013 | Report This Post

RE: Awesomeness

Dredd Take two for this adaptation of the classic British dystopian sci-fi comic book character. Not that I disliked the first Stallone attempt, I think that has been given a harsh time personally. Sure it wasn't adult enough and had Rob Schneider in it but they captured the look and feel I thought. I liked the plot idea for this film, the two Judges trapped within this enormous tower block and having to take down all the perps. Not exactly original but a good recipe for action, a sli... More

Posted by Phubbs at 22:26, 09 January 2013 | Report This Post

Awesomeness

I grew up with the 2000AD comics, and it is so great to see Dredd treated properly for the big screen. There are budget restraints noticeable from the lack of CGI sequences outside of Peach Trees, and you know what, that's a good thing ! This is a gritty, knarly movie that isn't shy about showing the odd exploded head. The action is tight and tense. There is an excellent screenplay from (The Beach) Alex Garland which is stripped down and raw. There are also some nice nods to the comic include... More

Posted by danielthompson99 at 11:03, 01 January 2013 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

In the now unlikely event that Dredd will get a sequel,isn't a much more logical,realistic (given the lo-fi depiction of the Mega City One presented on screen) and also budget-friendly choice going to be a variation on the "America" storyline? this has always been hailed as one of the best stories anyway and it would be a perfect way to expand Dredd's world while staying true to the vision of the first film. ... More

Posted by Lord_Summerisle_ at 01:47, 18 November 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

So is he going to get banned again or what? ... More

Posted by rich at 18:55, 04 November 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

L: manwihtheplan Best ever review of Dredd: vie ripped off The Raid. It's not a bad film but it's lacking the creativeness and soul the Raid had Raid wasn't even a very good movie to begin withstealing plot points.eah, he's right. hat's some ill-informed pish a dimwit posted on IMDB, Scott (www.imdb.com/title/tt1343727/board/flat/206522722fucki ng desperate are you to find anyone with gve to say about this film that you're re-posting irrelevant crap that other folk have spew... More

Posted by sauchieboy at 17:53, 04 November 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

Best ever review of Dredd: vie ripped off The Raid. It's not a bad film but it's lacking the creativeness and soul the Raid had Raid wasn't even a very good movie to begin withstealing plot points.:D] Yeah, he's right. If you're gonna copy from other films and least copy from Carry On Camping or Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World. ... More

Posted by manwihtheplan at 01:17, 04 November 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

I grew up with the comics as well, but I don't boast the background knowledge of Chris and I'm not a fanboy ! However, as I said earlier in this thread, this movie needs to be judged on its own merit. This was a great movie, unashamedly fun, and the writers, makers need to be applauded for stripping the film back, not filling it with Dredd gimmickry. They made a basic character movie with the budget they had and they pulled it off. It was entertaining and in some places breathtaking in it... More

Posted by Happy Shrapnel at 08:18, 01 November 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

Whether the Dark judges would work or not depends very much on the whether there is a sequel to the film anyway, but, hell, if you can have psi-cops, already a supernatural element, you can introduce Dark Judges in the third film, after a more sprawling Mega city one set sequel opening up the world. It's all about the next challenge presented to the protagonist. Make him the law in the city, then go beyond the situation his role gives him the power to be in judgement on. Easy ... More

Posted by jobloffski at 23:04, 31 October 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

Depends how they're done, I suppose. Which is why I think there's a distinct possibility there a sly bit of setting up/wishful thinking going on with those i] judges... Garland has made no secret of the fact he would like to do Judge Death at some point. He has also mentioned The Cursed Earth. So how would you feel about dinosaurs...? S: Whether it's Cal or The Cursed Earth next (assuming there is a next), I'd bet my right nut that Chopper'll be Dredd's sidekick in a sequel - probably in ... More

Posted by chris kilby at 17:25, 31 October 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

Good review Chris - but I really don't think the Dark Judges work in that world developed within the film. They feel like a step too far. ... More

Posted by Rgirvan44 at 17:08, 31 October 2012 | Report This Post

RE: Dredd

Doesn't everyone? Thanks, BTW. ... More

Posted by chris kilby at 17:03, 31 October 2012 | Report This Post

Next Page

CURRENT HIGHLIGHTS
		The Biggest Doctor Who Jaw-Droppers The Time Lord's biggest surprises over 50 years of TV
		Quicksilver & Scarlet Witch: A Beginner's Guide To The Avengers 2 Newcomers Your primer on the brother and sister joining the A-team
		Clint Mansell On Making Requiem For A Dream 'Darren had to edit at night because he could get access to the studio for free then.'
		Arrested Development Video Interviews Say hello to Jeffrey Tambor, David Cross, Tony Hale, Michael Cera and Alia Shawkat
		Empire's Favourite Music Moments From The Pixies to Burt Bacharach via Audioslave
		Cannes Film Festival Videblogisode #2 Episode II: Attack Of The Clouds featuring Emma Watson and Paul Haggis
		The 20 Soundtracks That Defined The 2000s The sounds of a dark knight, a mischievous Parisian, a troubled family and one flying house...

Follow @empiremagazine