Awesome
The following review contains slight spoilers for Dredd. If you haven't seen it yet, there isn't anything major here that spoils the film, but still a warning.
Well, I had nothing to do through all of April and was SO bored. I eventually decided to try some more movies, and started looking for anything that looked semi-interesting. I remembered hearing something on this site during something about 2012 comic movies and heard about something called Dredd. I checked Comic Vine's Page or it, and though the poster looked awesome and the plot sounded awesome. I have never read a Judge Dredd comic in my life (I have recently picked up Judge Dredd: Year One #1 from my comic store, but that was after I watched this film), so I decided to dive into a film I knew nothing about (other than the main concept). So is Dredd any good? I'll be the judge of that.
The Good
- The opening - I have to point this out. Pretty much the moment the film begins I get a good feeling about it. It pretty much sums up the main idea of Judge Dredd, and then we go into an awesome action scene. Just a great way to start the film.
- The Cast - The cast of this film was simply amazing. Karl Urban was fantastic in the role of Judge Dredd (not sure if it's accurate to the comics, but still awesome). Oliva Thirlby as awesome as Judge Anderson (and was nice to look at). Lena Headey was good as Ma-Ma, but we'll go more into her in a minute. Overall, the acting in this film was just fantastic.
- Ma-Ma - I could go into each character and explain why they were awesome, but I won't. A slight spoiler, Ma-Ma (formerly Madeline Madrigal) is the main villain of the film. She was a really nice villain, and a change of pace from the usual villains we got in 2012 comic movies (seriously, I loved Loki & Bane, but there was just some big problem with both, such as it turning out they were nothing but a pawn in another villain's plot). Just a great villain, written and played perfectly.
- The Action - The action of this film was amazing. It was simply amazing, no better way to put it. It was the perfect level of violence. It was a violent movie (It is Rated R after all), but it's not so Graphic that it's gross (like other R Rated comic films, but that rant is for another day). Overall, just perfect action.
- Writing - Whoever wrote this film did not get enough praise. This film is just perfectly written and just amazing.
- It was so much fun - I really don't know how to put this. The film was just fun. I'm not saying it was toned down and meant for 3-year-olds, but the film was just fun to watch.
The Bad
It pains me to put the word "Dredd" with the word "bad" without the word "isn't" in the middle, but let's get it over with.
- The Climax - I'm really not to fond of the climax of the movie. If you're expecting a big epic fight between Judge Dredd and Ma-Ma, you won't get what you're expecting. There's talking, a gun is fired, and about 2 minutes later it's over. It's like the writers for this realized they had to finish the script quickly, so just lazily threw something together to finish the climax. But I can forgive this, as the fighting before this scene (won't spoil who he's fighting) was simply awesome.
- How the Hell did this thing not do well at the Box office!?!?!!?!? - Seriously! Do people not understand a good movie when they see one? Just, how the hell did this thing not make money? It's one of the best films of 2012!
Stuff that really aren't flaws, but...
There's a few things in the film that I don't think I can call flaws, but still had to point them out:
- Judge Dredd leaves his helmet on the entire film - Just struck me as odd. I'm used to a something like a Iron Man movie where there's something happening behind the costume. I haven't read read a Judge Dredd comic, so I'll just assume he never takes his helmet off in the comics either. If that's the case, I praise this film for staying true to the comics.
- Most of the film takes place in one building - Really not a flaw or anything, I'm just used to a film being all over the place.
Conclusion
This is just a great film. It does have some minor flaws, but the film has so much good you can overlook these flaws. To sum everything up, the film has great acting, the action is violent but not so graphic that it's gross, it has awesome looking costumes, and pretty much everything that could go right with this film did. It's just so much fun. It sucks that this was a Box Office Flop, because that pretty much means we won't get a sequel, and it has so much potential to make a series of awesome films. Anyway, this is simply a great film that you should go get on DVD today. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to go find every Judge Dredd comic I can find.
My Final Verdict: 4/5 Stars.
