Great interview over at Empire. They were writing/prepping this film two years prior to "The Raid." Hopefully, comparisons that film (which is quite overrated, IMO) won't affect Dredd. http://www.empireonline.com/interviews/interview.asp?IID=1530
I just came back from the midnight showing. Karl Urban really nailed the character of Judge Dredd, and Olivia Thirlby was both captivating and amazingly hot! I have to agree with IGN that the action sequences weren't completely standout but overall they were quite fun and memorable. Other pluses include great music, badass kills and a cool villain in Lena Headey. I understand they were somewhat limited by their $40 million budget (and it showed, at times) but I hope they get a sequel and an even larger budget soon. Definitely worth seeing!
Interestingly, the director of 'The Raid' (who has made his opinion clear) may have actually upped the release of his film when he learned what the plot of Dredd was (scroll to about half way down.) It is unfortunate when two films accidentally step on each others toes like this, but honestly I think it's being more than a little overblown. You can tell just from the trailers that they're both *very* different films. Indeed, if you look at the old Dredd thread, you'll see me describing the leaked script as 'Die Hard' meets 'Training Day' because the focus of the narrative isn't so much about battling all the way up the bloc as it is about this being a rookie's final make or break assessment. To Dredd it's just another day on the job in Mega City One.
Avatar? Up? Ice Age 3? Drive Angry? Shark Night? Three Musketeers? Amazing Spiderman? Prometheus? Katari Veera Surasundarangi? Sex and Zen?
You wouldn't be missing anything. Although it was filmed in 3d and enhanced post for the slow-mo scenes, you won't actually miss out on anything if you can find it on 2d.
Don't they also play with the framing of the shots? In one of the trailers, blood splattered into the black frame outside the image, it's probably supposed to "come right at you" in the cinema. But in 2D, on a TV screen, that looks funny.
Just got home from seeing it. Sadly, I was one of only four people in theaters. I loved it. I was the only one to laugh out loud at Dredd's one-liners, but I don't think some people get the character. I thought the movie was a great, fun ride, though I feel I wasted my money with regards to the 3D. I really hope this movie manages to do well so that at least one sequel gets made. Urban was awesome (LOVED his line at the end..."Yeah.") and Thirlby was great at acting and extremely cute. I will definitely go see it at least one more time in theaters and it's a BODOR for me (Buy On Day Of Release)
I thought it was great fun. Couldn't believe how violent it was - this was no Rob Schneider co-starrer, that's for sure. I thought Urban totally nailed the character and I loved the grimy lived-in look of MC1 and the uniforms and hardware. I didn't miss the flying bikes at all. I'll probably go again, as I'd arranged to go with one mate, who couldn't make it last night and then I went spur-of-the-moment with another friend. I saw a 2D showing today, so I'll try to get to a 3D next time.
^He's certainly been mentioned as a possibility but I don't think they'll decide one way or the other until they know they even have a second film. Personally I'd prefer they hold off on Judge Death until at least the second sequel. The next one need to give us a wider perspective of The Meg, it's denizens and the Justice Department before they attempt anything that outlandish. Something along the lines of 'America' might be a good way to go. It'd be a good fit if they intend to do something like 'Necropolis' after that as the second one can end with Dredd taking the long walk. Leaving a tidy set-up for the 'Tale of a Dead Man' lead-in for the third film. Or they could just avoid the epics altogether and stick with the simpler day-to-day story model. There's certainly abundant material for either approach.
I thought I read an interview with Alex Garland where he said he'd like to introduce Judge Death, butIIRC, he said in the third movie (if it got that far).
Yeah, I read on either IGN or one of the comic book sites I go to that he wants to do stuff with the desert outside of the city and deal with Dredd's origin in the second movie, and then he'd do Judge Death in the third.
Really good film. Urban was a terrific Dredd and definitely pulls off the role convincingly with the helmet on the entire time. Headley was a scary chick in this film. Thrilby was good too. I'm impressed how they managed to keep the story uncomplicated.
Fantastic flick. I enjoyed every minute of it. From the few comics I read in the early 90s, Urban nailed the attitude and voice of Dredd I had imagined. Thirlby was great. I liked how they handled her character and what she could do. It was simultaneously unique and so obviously the way to go with it in hindsight. Very pretty girl, too. I don't think I've seen her in anything else, but I'd certainly follow her now. Headey was awesome as MaMa. I'm rewatching The Sarah Connor Chronicles at the moment and it was a huge disconnect to see her as the thoroughly evil, bloodthirsty villain. The action was gloriously violent and bloody, which was a huge surprise as I'd expected another PG-13 neutering. I was so happy the story was just a day on the job, instead of another grimdark sci-fi the world will end if we don't shoot all these people by the final reel plots. I really hope they make more of these and each one follows the same day on the job feel. I love the Die Hard movies, but the first, more personal plot is still the best. The increasing threats of the sequels were not what made those films good. A Will definitely see again soon with friends and buy it on release.
Damn - didn't do well at US box office - hopefully the international box-office means we get a sequel.
The 18 cert will hurt it no doubt and TBH I don't get 18 certs compared to you can see at 15. Looks like $10 million opening weekend but hopefully WOM will push it up and overseas will help overcome the $50 million budget minus marketing (Also marketing for the film has been poor IMO). The film warrants a sequel from a creative standpoint.
I really liked this film. It was very gritty, very R-rated. The cast all did great jobs. I do hope it does well box office wise in the long run. It deserves too. My only issue was when Wood Harris's character captures Anderson with her own gun. I couldn't see it, but was he holding her finger to the trigger? If not, there was no way he could've shot her. I was also wondering if maybe she allowed herself to be captured so that she could get on the inside.