Dredd Film Review!

I'm not sure who was begging for a triumphant return of the Judge Dredd character to the silver screen, (And judging from the box office numbers, those crazy kids were too busy exerting justice elsewhere to fill those theater seats) but I'm kind of glad someone listened. Dredd is not particularly smart, nor subtle, nor even all that spectacular. It has a paper thin plot, little to no characterization, and plenty of your standard modern day action movie slow motion shooting sequences. Still, despite its shortcomings, Dredd is undeniably entertaining and ends up being perhaps the guiltiest guilty pleasure of 2012.

So, we're thrown into the mix of this dystopian future with a little exposition courtesy of your obligatory voiceover. We learn that crime has gotten so bad, that the duty of judge, jury, and executioner has been assigned to a law enforcement group known simply as 'Judges.' One of the most esteemed and all-around bad ass of this group is none other than Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) who is assigned to evaluate the latest recruit Judge Anderson. (Portrayed by the ever so lovely Olivia Thirlby) Long story short, they get caught in a lockdown of a large apartment complex run by the villainous Ma-Ma. (Lena Headey) They spend the majority of the movie getting caught up in all kinds of chaos and badass shootouts trying to escape the place. Like I said, simple stuff.

However, this simple stuff has quite a bit of flair to boot. The joy of this film comes in its execution. Pete Travis directs a script by Alex Garland (Of 28 Days Later screenwriting fame) as if it's the B-Movie to end all B-Movies and in some ways he succeeds. The action is top notch and thrilling and the violence is absolutely insane. Make no mistake, this is not fun for the whole family. (As some idiotic parents discovered after bringing in their five year old and removing her about half an hour into the movie) All of this would be for naught though if Karl Urban wasn't so bloody fantastic as the film's title character. Urban is slowly but surely moving through the ranks as one of the finest character actors of this generation and Dredd is no exception. He gets it. He gets the world; he gets the character and every single one-liner is delivered with nothing but purest, delectable perfection.

So, with Dredd we do not have the action movie to end all action movies. Its violence is a bit off-putting at times, but it's enough fun to be at least slightly worth your time. However, if you and your friends are drunk off your asses, you might end up being convinced that Dredd is the best picture of the year and who am I to judge you for that?


FINAL RATING: 3/5