Judge Dredd is far from the cultural icon many, particularly the devout readers of the 2000AD comic book he stars in, believe he is. Ask the wrong person and you could easily be led to believe he’s a creation on par with Darth Vader or Sherlock Holmes. Step out of the comic bubble and the only trace of him on popular culture is that terrible 1995 Sylvester Stallone version. I can guarantee that when your standard movie goer sees a poster for the new adaptation of the character, they don’t go ‘At long last, a worthy film adaptation of that great icon that we all know and love.’ They’re much more likely to go ‘Who?’
Hopefully that’ll be enough to keep them from the cinema because Dredd is a god awful film. It’s a boring experience that drags, despite the swift 95 minute running time. It doesn’t seem to know who its audience is. On the one hand, it doesn’t appear extremely faithful to its source material – the plot is entirely new and the basic set up aside a lot of the more interesting sounding elements of the Dredd universe aren’t present– but on the other there’s little present to appeal to the regular public.
It may have been met with mostly favourable reviews, with review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes giving it an amazing 91% score, but it’s worth noting the average rating is a much lower 6.5/10; most reviews place it just above average.
There is admittedly something refreshing about a British action film that has high ambitions despite its small budget and you can appreciate the toned down plot is a way to accommodate more violence and the added 3D; there will be no comparison to The Raid here. Although there is one recent film that Dredd bares a startling resemblance to, if not in direct plot, but in a stylised nature, with a solitary character and sudden explosions of extreme violence. Dredd is Drive for adolescents.
But just what made Dredd suck so badly? Click next to find out.
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28 Comments
Dredd was awesome. It just was.
An excellent film, brilliantly written and excellently acted. Well worth the 91% rotten tomatoes score (finally, they got one right) and the 7.8 on IMDB.
You just don’t have the slightest clue sir :-/
Rouge is French for “red”. You spell it rogue.
Empathic and emphatic are two different words. Does nobody proofread this site?
You didn’t get it. I can point out at least 3 incidences of satire off the top of my head that are present in this film. I’ll give you a clue, one of them is the heavy-handed ‘interrogation’ scene. Maybe it wasn’t ‘funny’ enough for you to notice the satire.
Dredd is the most refreshing, exciting action film I’ve seen in decades and, as an almost lifelong reader of 2000 AD and Judge Dredd, is definitely the most faithful comic adaptation I’ve ever seen.
The comic strip doesn’t always focus on the satirical elements (in fact, the amount of actual ‘satire’ is negligble), the strip can be a comedy, a tragedy, a drama or all out action. The film makers had to make a decision to focus on the action element as this would translate more easily to film. Also, as an introduction to Dredd and Mega-City One, it makes sense to present the character in a pure and pared down form.
Alex Garland has already stated that a sequel would focus on Dredd beginning to have doubts about the system he serves, as he has done in the comics over the years.
The film is fantastic and hopefully, if it does well enough at the box office, we’ll get a sequel or two focusing on other aspects of Dredd’s rich and interesting world.
Reason your review like,totally sucked ,it wasn’t engaging enough,you lost me at sucked.
You used the word sucked more than once which bring to to believe you you are about 12 and therefore you opinion is worth nothing and like,totally sucks.
The whole piece was a subtle satire,you missed it.
I’m wasting my life on here goodbye
have been back to watch this movie again ….really enjoyed.. this was like watching a movie from the late 80′s….. nicely done
I consider Dredd an absolute triumph, satisfying both fans and regular readers of 2000AD, yet crafting an exciting and enjoyable film for any other cinemagoer.
I personally found the 3D effects to be of excellent quality, and most definitely added something to various sections of the film. Combined with the Slo-Mo it was often interesting and beautiful.
The story was classic Dredd – in fact it could have been lifted from the pages of 2000AD. We see a no-nonsense lawman taking a rookie through her first faltering steps, until by the end of the film the circle is complete and she is as badass as the lead protagonist. As a character piece, it is superb.
Then there’s the sparse but clever use of CGI, the excellent visual effects, the blasting soundtrack and the overall feel of a cursed city. Brilliant, just brilliant.
This film goes all the way up to 11.
Stonehenge, where the demons dwell, where the banshees live and they do live well ;)
Reviewer, you are a total penis. In fact I have never read such a ill informed article, for the reasons posted from others.
Dredd in the comics is deliberately faceless so he can be many stories- in fact I have never known another comic character be so versatile. From week to week he can be anything from comical to totalitarian or just a bastard.
In this film he is written to be an uncompromising cop that does his job, but sees that inflexible attitude challenged by a more sympathetic Anderson, whilst wrapped up in some excellent set pieces, amazing music and solid production values.
Why don’t you just go back to writing your homework. Or eat your tea, I think I can hear your mum calling up the stairs….
Dredd is as big a success as your poor excuse for a “review! is a failure!
really? god awful film? are you serious? it was one the best action films thats come out in ages, it sticks very close to the comics but keeping it feeling a little more realistic, noone seemed to mind when they did that to the iconic batman that everyone already knew and loved. i have this feeling the writer is american and just cant accept that when the british do something they do it right, they dont over do it wrong a thousand times and release it anyway xD
oh i just got it
what culture…..
it means the reviewers and writers arnt cultured enough to right a decent review and dont know an amazing movie when it hits them in the face xD
Troll review.
No seriously, trolling for hits? Shame on you, sir.
I actually disagree with every point.
The slow mo gave it a nice atmosphere and tied into the plot the effect the drugs had.
The 3d was okay, but nothing special, like every other film, certainly not a negative.
The quips wouldn’t have suited this style of Dredd and rightly so. People hated Stallones Dredd because it wasn’t serious enough. Besides Dredd is there to dish out judgement, not talk to an invisible camera.
The only flop of the film was Ma’am destroying the floor and Dredd aimlessy running past thousands of bullets. Forgivable as its a standard in any action film.
I enjoyed the film and think this article is fluff.
Dredd was a great film. It was violent and brazen, which is exactly what was wanted.
I assume Mr Leadbeater, that you are the kind of person who didn’t enjoy Lord Of The Rings because it ‘went on too long’.
Terrible film critque.
I really enjoyed it, I thought that Urban played it brillantly, granted the end was a little poor but again i can excuse that.
How can something that started 2 years before Thatcher came to power have been a reaction to her government?
Wow. I cant even begin to describe how DREDD-ful this poorly written and completely nonsensical article is. Utter garbage.
I have to say, did you have to keep nipping out of the cinema for more sweets or perhaps the toilet? or were you busy watching the entrance in case the Usher came in and caught you in an 18 Cert?
Have to disagree with all your five ‘suck’ points. So you don’t like 3D, fair enough but that is hardly a point against Dredd.
Lack of satire and ‘no attempt to question the ethics of society’ so you missed the corrupt Judges and their lines, not to mention Anderson’s motivation?
You don’t like Slo-Mo, its so ‘terribly unimaginitive’ nobody has used the idea before? as for Slo-Mo being ‘forgotten halfway through’, i’m assuming you had to sneek back out and miss the last five mins or did the Usher finally catch you? as it plays a central role in the finale. The compliant about the drug showing the world in hyper enhanced colour while the rest of the world is in ‘drab dirty greys’says more about your lack of experience of these things that any fault on the film makers.
No threat in the action sequence? again you must have been hiding when Dredd gets shot and is unable to move, not many films take that kind of risk with their lead.
As for lack of empathy, that says more about you than the film,my young Padawan. Anderson’s progess and her mutation open her up more to the audience that most female leads get to emote in any custume drama.
Next time stick to review some nice Cert 15, at least then you can give the screen your full attention.
I agree with every point, this film was a waste of my time and money. It was dull, boring and quite silly.
I just think the reviewer is too politically liberal to ever enjoy Judge Dredd.
Unjustified slander directed toward a judge. What’s it gonna be, kid? A body bag or the cubes? Makes no difference to me.
I think this is the most accurate review of the film, a brutally honest review. The plot was just a pastiche of Die Hard but given a video game spin – go up levels, shoot people – the slo-mo was narratively pointless, there was no satire, hardly any humour, the tone was just grim, the blocks and corridors and rooms were too slummy, there was endless swearing (since when has 2000AD’s Judge Dredd strip ever used the f word? Never, that’s when), the villain was a hooker (what, Garland couldn’t come up with a more colourful villain?) The imagination behind this film was lame.
A bland, ‘no vision’ type approach to the character. And the title was crappy too – Dredd 3D. Sounds like an amusement park ride. “Yep, ride the Dredd 3D rollercoaster. It’s dreadfully good!”
I thought the film was well-made and the main actors were great, Karl Urban was a wonderful Judge Dredd, but the plot (anyone wanna mention The Raid for the billionth time? LOL) was too threadbare and the 3D ticket pricing must have alienated a lot of the potential audience. I doubt most people want to see a lowish budget R rated action film that’s more costly to see than the other films on release in that week.
I applaud the film makers for getting a new Judge Dredd film made but the vision was so lacking anything remotely original, ‘Dredd world’ originality, I mean.
Go away, Scott.
Yet another review blowing out of his arse without providing decent, reasoned explanations. This review sucked. Jog on.
Trolling for hits: sad.