“Negotiation’s Over. Sentence Is Death.” – Judge Dredd

A considerably overlooked film in terms of sci-fi-action flicks, 2012’s Dredd, written by Alex Garland and directed by Pete Travis (Vantage Point, Endgame, City of Tiny Lights), centres on said character. Whose comic strip in the science fiction anthology series; 2000 AD, created by Kelvin Gosnell, Pat Mills and John Wagner, was one of the longest-running in the comic magazine’s history, being featured since its second issue in 1977. Merging futurism with law enforcement, Dredd and his fellow Judges are empowered to arrest, sentence and even execute criminals on the spot, and this modern, cinematic adaptation, fuelled by much of the same bombastic violence and sci-fi imagery, does a remarkable job of capturing the source material’s gritty spirit.

Plot Summary: In a dystopian future on the American East Coast lies the overpopulated and crime-ridden metropolis of Mega-City One, where officers have the authority to act as judge, jury and executioner. Within this city, the resolute Judge Dredd is assigned to assess rookie Cassandra Anderson, as the two are ordered to reach the top of an apartment complex and stop the nefarious crimelord, Ma-Ma, from manufacturing and distributing narcotics. But, as the duo enter the complex, they quickly find themselves trapped as Ma-Ma locks the building down, forcing Dredd and his newfangled partner to fight their way out, one level at a time…

Technically a reboot following the character’s first cinematic interpretation with Judge Dredd in 1995, which featured Sylvester Stallone as the titular character. Dredd is a far more faithful adaptation, as while Stallone may have looked the part, it was clear that the film itself thoroughly misunderstood the source material. Dredd, however, immediately thrusts its audience into a riveting and intense story, which considering how self-contained it is, also manages to fit a surprising amount of world-building in between, hinting towards the many other districts of Mega-City One we could’ve seen should the film have been a box office success rather than the commercial disappointment it sadly was, earning a little over £41 million on a budget of around £45 million.

Speaking only when necessary and never giving even the slightest hint of emotion, Karl Urban portrays protagonist Judge Dredd with extreme accuracy, as Dredd never breaks temperament or goes through a satisfying character arc. Instead, Dredd is simply a well-built, incorruptible officer with no time for low-life criminals (just as he is in the original comic strips), and Urban nails this portrayal, even with half of his head obscured by a helmet for the entirety of the runtime, illustrating Urban’s clear understanding of the role. Dredd’s partner, Cassandra Anderson, portrayed by Olivia Thirlby, is also a compelling character, demonstrating a benchmark of skill far below her superior yet possessing psychic abilities, which make her too valuable to dismiss. Lastly, there’s the film’s antagonist, Ma-Ma, who was originally written as an elderly woman before Lena Headey convinced Alex Garland to make her a middle-aged misandrist. And although the character doesn’t receive the same level of depth as Dredd or his rookie partner, Ma-Ma is still a convincing felon, as Headey portrays her as a ruthless individual living in an equally ruthless world.

Playing into the idea of Dredd‘s post-apocalyptic world being in constant disarray, the grimy set design of Dredd, along with its murky brown colour palette, presents the setting of Mega-City One (a.k.a. Johannesburg with a few CG enhancements) as a rundown municipality with similarly rundown technology. Correspondingly, the filthy hallways of the central apartment complex, Peach Trees, are always permeated with litter, aged sci-fi scrap and spray-painted surfaces. Moreover, the film is given a great sense of style through the energetic camerawork by Anthony Dod Mantle and the smooth integration of CG effects, which outside of a handful of moments where the film fully indulges in its graphic violence by flinging blood towards the camera, have aged admirably.

As you’d expect from a pessimistic sci-fi flick, the original score by Paul Leonard-Morgan is both rousing and brooding, with tracks like Mega-City One and You Look Ready all perfectly accompanying what’s on-screen through their heady mix of guitar riffs and thumping electronic beats, making for a score that has no filler, as every track flawlessly correlates with the fast-paced action.

Continuing to be true to the original comic strips, Dredd’s primary form of transportation, the Lawmaster Motorcycle, is faithfully recreated for the film, as the production team constructed a series of functional motorbikes for production. They achieved this by taking the chassis of standard motorbikes, extending them, adding custom fairings, and then fitting them with larger tires so they remained operable, a level of effort that I feel was certainly worth it, as Dredd’s renowned motorcycle is featured front and centre during the film’s thrilling opening sequence.

In summary, though many may see this sci-fi action-thriller as unadulterated style-over-substance and nothing more, Dredd is a film deeply committed to the genres it’s trying to represent. With thrilling action sequences, substantial world-building and impressive visual effects, all rooted in deadpan humour, Dredd is a more than entertaining ride. And, in a world full of compromised adaptations where self-indulgent directors/screenwriters make whatever changes they desire without much thought or consideration, Dredd is something of a triumph, as the film avoids the common misstep adaptations tend to take, where the cinematic adaptation ends up bearing little resemblance to its source material, aside from the title. Rating: low 8/10.