Dredd [2012]

Hurray, another movie from the nineties is getting a remake! Wow, I can’t wait to see more of these, said no one ever… But wait, there’s more… This one is in 3D, with like stuff flying into your face and blood and shit (well, not actual shit). I am so tired of writing reviews for movies that suffer the same flaw, quick cash. They are looking to interest people to check out the movie in 3D in theaters and make a quick buck, turning it into a product and applying to it all the rules that apply to any other product (shampoo, condoms…). Unless you are watching the 3D version, you will be forced to “enjoy” prolonged sequences of stuff slowly moving and flying towards you, cramming the 3D down your throat with nothing left to do but to swallow (giggity or I guess gaggity)

So, I guess you are wondering why I it is worth watching after all that. The reason for that is a small miracle that the director and cast managed to produce. Very talented director Pete Travis managed to create a really good movie, working within the constraints set by the studio. Not to mention Karl Urban, a magnificent actor with only one smudge in his resume (Pathfinder), but he redeemed himself for that with the passion and skill that he approached the Star Trek reboot. To seal the deal we have Lena Headey, now starring in Game Of Thrones, playing an evil bitch and loving it.

They did stray a lot from the original movie starring Sylvester Stallone from 1995 and did a “Game of Death” thing. To clarify that term, it refers to a level based movie, where the protagonist are constrained to one building and they are slowly advancing to the top floor where the boss is waiting for them (although she is a hot, sexy female boss). Used also in Punisher 2, and more recently in The Raid: Redemption, this style suits and I guess other gamers that are quite familiar with the concept. While the original tried to show us how would future look, Dredd is more concentrated on the action and the characters, and while I prefer the latter one in most of the movies, in science fiction I much more enjoy seeing how would future look, but then again this is a personal preference.

The decay of our society, in almost all areas continued and in the future people live in huge megalopolises where justice is dealt swiftly by the Judges. They are literally the judge, jury and the executioners, determining on the spot whether someone deserves to die and what is his punishment. The most bad-ass of them all is Judge Dredd, the most skilled and efficient Judge ever to live in Mega City One. Of course the opposite of Dredd’s experience and skill is a young female Judge Cassandra Anderson. Cassandra possess some psychic abilities, and seems to be a promising Judge, so Dredd is assigned to train and evaluate her. This will all change when the two of them are called into an infamous building complex under control by a ruthless criminal known only as Ma-Ma.

Director: Pete Travis

Cast: Karl Urban, Lena Headey, Olivia Thirlby, Rakie Ayola, Wood Harris

Fun Facts: Unlike the previous Judge Dredd movie, Karl Urban has confirmed that the helmet will never come off to keep true to the comic book character.

Rating:

IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1343727