#47 — Dredd
For those who haven’t been following along, this is an illustrated countdown of my 49 1/2 most ESSENTIAL action movies. Last week I talked about Edge of Tomorrow, which I incorrectly numbered as 47, because I’m very good at this. Today is the real number 47. Don’t judge me.
One of the reasons for making a countdown this long is that I can squeeze in stuff like Dredd, a release that I loved seeing in theaters, and have watched a bunch of times since then. It’s not a perfect recreation of the zanier, more satirical comic book dystopia it was born from. It doesn’t quite have the budget for a more mutant population, or robot rebellion. Instead, it smartly reconfigures the material into a single-location, day-in-the-life action cop story. It’s devoid of any origin explanations, end-of-world plots, or weary runtimes, bringing bare essentials at a time when I was starved for some. I do miss the elaborate production design of the 1995 adaptation, but I think it’s a fair tradeoff for our return. There’s lots of John Carpenter-esque DIY craft on display and some fun use of slow motion and color.
I’m mostly going to gush about Karl Urban for his body-language driven dedication to a character that appears to be nothing but a helmet and a frown. While never revealing his face, he scowls his way through a performance that is subtly balanced between action bravado and an understated, gallows humor. Everything about his line delivery is pitch perfect, blending Robocop and Batman into a role that now belongs to him, while somehow dodging the silliness of yet another gravely voiced tough guy. There was about a solid six year run where all kinds of movie dudes were trying out there own version of the “Bat-voice” and this one is the winner of the GGA (Golden Growl Award). Everyone else go home with your complementary bag of Ricola.
The action is bluntly mechanical, much like the character. Instead of “bullet ballet”, there’s a focus on tactical munitions. He’s got all these different ammo types, like Hotshot, High Ex, Starburst, or Chicken Noodle. I made up those last two, but I’d like to see them. I’d like to hear him read the names of all his ammo. His special bullets all have unique visual properties, and a very situational, utilitarian quality. They’re basically gadgets, and extensions of his gavel, the “Lawgiver”.
The honorable Judge Dredd is a man of few words, but he loves to talk about the law. If you break a few laws, you can really get him going. At one point, he hacks into the intercom and explains the rules to everyone, since they’ve constantly been trying to kill him and whatnot. I was going to paraphrase, but for the sake of journalistic integrity, I’m going to transcribe what I believe to be a perfect phone call:
“In case you people have forgotten, this block operates under the same rules as the rest of the city. Ma-Ma is not the law… I am the law. Ma-Ma is a common criminal; guilty of murder, guilty of the manufacture and distribution of the narcotic known as Slo-Mo, and as of now under sentence of death. Any who obstruct me in carrying out my duty will be treated as an accessory to her crimes… you have been warned. And as for you Ma-Ma… judgement time.”
Such excellent adjudication. He gets a little Judy with some opening sarcasm, which is important. Let them know you can’t be broken, then go for the classic “I AM THE LAW”. This was Judge Stallone’s mistake. You can’t lead with that line, everyone just sees you as a study hall teacher. Dredd goes on to describe the villain as a common criminal while running through a list of her offenses, as if he’s been jotting them down in between melting heads. Tough, but fair. Judge Marilyn would approve. Finally, he issues a warning to the entire building not to get in his way, closing his remarks with “JUDGEMENT TIME”. I love the way he says that. It’s time to take a page out of Judge Hatchett’s (all-time great judge name) playbook and cut through all the bs. No more games.
The baddies are pretty shaken up after that phone call, so they dial 1–800-CROOKED-JUDGES. This is a really fun wrinkle to the plot that leads to a confrontation between Dredd and Judge Lex, who corners him in a position of certain death. Langley Kirkwood (Lex) unloads with some terrific helmet acting, unable to resist the opportunity to excoriate THE Judge Dredd. Very judgmental, but not judicial. It turns into a classic “if you’re gonna shoot, shoot — don’t talk” scenario, like Tuco warned us about.
Ma-ma’s eventual sentencing reveals just how routine this all is for Dredd. It’s reinforced in the rhythmic repetition of sight and sound throughout the film. The spiraling highways of Mega City One frame the city at different times of day. The barriers that locked him in Peach Trees pull back like curtains to reveal daylight, but it doesn’t feel like freedom. It feels like waking up for another day of work. And as he rides off on his “Lawmaster” motorcycle, we hear a variation of the same opening narration. “Only one thing fighting for order in the chaos — Judges”. I’m resigned to the fact that this will never get the big screen sequel it deserves, but can I please have of a proper court room tv show? And keep that opening narration.
