2012 has undoubtedly been a year absolutely caked in comic book adaptations. Well, at least it’s felt that way as films have spread themselves out considerably this Summer to avoid stepping on each other’s toes. This attempt at maximising profit has made the year feel as if the comic book period is constantly ongoing, never ending and utterly unescapable. You WILL watch comic book film after comic book film after comic book film until your eyes bleed, and you will like it. So, as you can probably tell, as September has swung round my interest and enthusiasm for this particular genre of film has begun to wane. Enter Dredd, comic book icon. Yawn, right? Despite a lacklustre and unappealing trailer I was drawn into watching Dredd both by the promise of being an ‘adult’ comic book film (this opinion based purely on its 18 certificate) and a curiosity at the generally very good reception it had been getting.
I was surprised at the good reception, and I say this without the intention to irritate any Dredd-fanboys who may be out there, because really the odds were stacked against this release. Firstly, there has only ever been one Judge Dredd movie beforehand and it was terrible. Secondly, the trailer was terrible. Thirdly, although you have to admire Judge Dredd’s stony faced bravado, he also is one of the most flat comic book characters I’ve ever come across.
The plot follows thus: Earth is largely irradiated and so its inhabitants live in sprawling ‘megacities’. Megacity 1 is where Dredd takes place and crime is rampant, the only police force being pseudo-fascist judges who act as all parts of the law (see: any of the thousands of instances where Judge Dredd screams: I AM THE LAW) and take a hard line on all criminal behaviour. Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) is one of these judges who take a rookie Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) on an assignment, which predictably all goes dreadfully wrong. They get locked inside of a huge spiralling apartment complex called Pleasant Trees filled with notorious gun-toting perps and drug barons. Does the second part sound familiar? It’s more-or-less a futuristic version of critically acclaimed action film also released this year: The Raid. So the plot isn’t particularly inventive and sets Judge Dredd and his colleague up to effectively shoot their way out of Pleasant Trees, allowing for relentless action to take place over an hour and a half. However, rather than being a weakness, here lies the film’s strength. Dredd doesn’t aspire to be anything it’s not. Judge Dredd isn’t trying to save the world; he’s just trying to survive, limiting the scale of the title’s ambitions and consequently avoiding some of the potential trappings that Dredd’s awful predecessor had.
As mentioned earlier, while the character of Dredd is flat beyond all comprehension, it remarkably doesn’t matter. Urban plays the role with such confidence and conviction that he embodies the character, making him the most convincing incarnation to date. Admittedly if you came to this film expecting character epiphanies and interesting story arcs you’ll be bitterly disappointed. Dredd’s character exists purely to act as an unstoppable behemoth and catalyst for all of the mesmerising action that takes place. That being said, to counteract the potential middling of the story, Anderson is put forward as a rookie who isn’t really cut out for being a judge because she actually has a personality, and so gives this otherwise brainless action flick some emotional depth. (Emphasis on the word ‘SOME’) The rest of the acting is average and no member of the cast gave a performance worth writing home about. But it doesn’t really matter, because the film really isn’t about the plot, or where the story’s going, it’s about how good and bloody the ride is.
The peculiarity about this film though is that, on paper, it shouldn’t be good. For the most part, the dialogue is terrible and beyond cheesy. At one point I wondered if the actors had any idea that this film would be anything but dreadful and I honestly think they probably didn’t. Unless they were in the post-production labs it would just feel like your bog-standard sluggish action flick with a laughable script. However, if they had been in the post-production lab, they would have been screaming with the audience (at least the audience I experienced this with) about the awesomeness of what was occurring on the screen. I completely detest 3D but this was the only film I’ve ever seen where I’ve actually thought that its use was somewhat justified and actually thought about during filming and editing.
Where this film really shines is both in the intensity and ‘no-holds barred’ approach to the action and violence and also the interesting artistic direction. The criminal underworld are all hooked on this drug called ‘Slow-Mo’ the effects of which I’m sure you can divulge from its hardly enigmatic name. This allowed some interesting visual pieces where, during gun-fights mainly, time slowed down, colours were heightened and made more visceral giving the film a more interesting artistic feel than your typical action affair. It again reinforced its gruesome nature, as bullet impacts were slowed down and zoomed in on, just in case regular bloodshed wasn’t enough for you. The fast-paced score added to the surprisingly gritty ambience of the film, feeling much darker than any of the other comic book outings this year.
Although a prominent plot device, it could seem to some that this ‘Slow-Mo’ drug had been shoehorned into the film purely as an artistic license and give Dredd a different edge to other action outings. But, honestly, I didn’t feel like it was particularly overused and it was interesting enough that it slot in nicely with the rest of the action, and didn’t feel jarring or out of place.
Dredd isn’t a high-concept or particularly deep film. You won’t have your whole approach to life changed or your way of thinking completely reconfigured. Nor will you come away from the film even thinking it was particularly clever. In any way. No, however, you will: laugh at the unbelievable corniness of the dialogue, you will recoil in horror at the unrelenting gore and violence on the screen but most importantly, you’ll have a damn good time. And, if you’re like me, you’ll come away thinking ‘you know what: if they made another installment, I’d probably go see it’. Which is what writer Alex Garland was hoping for, according to a recent interview. So I guess he wins. It’s not ground-breaking stuff, but it sure as hell is a fun film.
3.5/5 stars