Dredd is a 2012 sci-fi action film based on the comic Judge Dredd. It has nothing to do with the 1995 Sylvester Stallone flick. I was pretty weary of this film when it came out. It seemed like just another reboot. I didn’t have any expectations for this movie. In that regard, it was much better than I thought it would be. It stars Karl Urban (best known as Éomer, the horseback warrior in The Lord of the Rings or as Bones in the Star Trek reboot) as Judge Dredd and Lena Headey as the main villain.
Dredd is set in Mega-City One in a dystopic future. Crime is rampant. The only solution are Judges. They are judge, jury, and executioner. They are the law. Dredd is a Judge. He’s the main character. He’s tasted with seeing if a new recruit is worthy of being a Judge. They go out to investigate a triple homicide that’s part of a bigger scheme involving drugs and gangs and end up trapped in a giant skyscraper battling a powerful and eccentric villain. The plot is kind of like Training Day meets Die Hard, but with more explosions and less likeable characters.
Dredd is not a great film, however it’s still a solid action flick. It’s enjoyable. I would put it on the same level as Equilibrium. It’s not a game changer, but it deserves to be a cult classic. I liked it. I wouldn’t buy it or pay much money to watch it, but I wouldn’t change the channel if it was playing on TV.
Critically Rated at 12/17
Written, Rated, and Reviewed by Brendan H. Young
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