Dredd (2012) – Review

Dredd was released back in 2012 and, unfortunately, didn’t perform very well at the box office. According to these numbers, in fact, it came in nearly $15 million below its production budget, which is a fairly disastrous outcome in the film industry (or anywhere else for that matter). Because of their numbers, the film that many expected to lead to a franchise more or less fizzled out, despite pretty strong ratings from both viewers and critics.

That’s not to say the film didn’t establish something of a legacy however. To begin with, it developed what’s often referred to as a “cult following” of fans who adored it, and have even petitioned for a sequel, despite the low box office numbers. Additionally, there was a Dredd-based game made alongside the film, and described here as one infused with the bold and brooding style of the comics on which the film was based. Largely an atmospheric homage to Mega City One, the setting of the film, the game speaks to fans’ adoration of the film’s vibe more than anything else.

It’s really that vibe that shines through and makes this not just a good action film, but one that feels pretty unique. Dredd paints a grim, dystopian picture of a United States decimated by radiation and reduced to a few sprawling urban environments overrun by criminals. One such environment is Mega City One, a sort of post-acpocalyptic, super-sized New York City that reaches from Boston to what was once Washington, D.C. There, an elite force of “Judges” do their best to enforce the law. Basically, these are police officers outfitted like clunkier versions of RoboCop and licensed to capture criminals, pass judgment, and if necessary execute. Judge Dredd (Karl Urban) is essentially the best of the bunch, and the film shows his struggle to take down a criminal ring distributing a dangerous new drug called Slo-Mo, which allows users to experience the passage of time at an extremely slow rate.

It’s an interesting setup for a crime film, but the visuals of Mega City One steal the show. This is an extremely dark and grim setting packed with criminals and vagrants, and providing a sense of danger around every corner. And the whole thing serves to emphasise the necessity of characters like Judge Dredd. Where Iron Man serves as a nice complement to the U.S. military, occasionally accomplishing goals more quickly or sneakily than military forces may be able to, his abilities don’t necessarily redefine what’s possible in law enforcement. By comparison, Dredd and other Judges would seem to be the only way to combat the vast criminal networks infecting a lawless dystopian metropolis – entire S.W.A.T. teams wrapped up into single men and armoured to the max. This lends the film a certain degree of seriousness that plays pretty well, though it’s also aware of its absurdities and uses little touches of humour effectively.

All in all it was a very well done project. It may not be the most appealing film to those who don’t like darker action stories or dystopian settings, but speaking more generally it stands out as a pretty unique instalment in both the action and comic adaptation genres. And despite the aforementioned box office numbers, the cult following’s call for a sequel may actually have gained some ground. Recently, this report indicated that Karl Urban himself is exploring the idea of trying to satisfy the request by putting a sequel directly onto a streaming platform like Netflix or Amazon. We’ll see if such an idea can move forward and this can become a franchise after all.

This review was written by Richard Booth