Fighting the Future

The Alex Garland-Pete Travis sci-fi adaptation of the 2000AD comic, Dredd, has finished its theatrical run in the US with a disappointing $13 million to show for it. Despite its strong opening in the UK (garnering $1.7 million in opening weekend alone securing the number one box office position - an achievement for an 18 rated film that has not occurred since Saw 3D) and decent reviews, the film has not secured what was considered the “sweet spot” for a sequel to be immediately greenlit.

Analysts claim the poor 1995 Judge Dredd film starring Sylvester Stallone hampered the remakes chances of huge success but predicted at least an $8 million opening, which was missed by around $2 million. The lack of marketing drive and disappointing teaser trailer was swiftly followed with great promise at conventions, a subsequent slickly edited trailer which highlighted the film (but chose to tell the entire story including the film’s climax) was received better and showcased Dredd’s 3D effects. But it may have been too late to salvage the film’s low expectations given the discussions about (and praise for) Karl Urban as the iconic Judge Dredd only began to gain momentum after the film’s release. There’s no doubt Dredd 3D is a good film. It delivers a slice of mayhem rooted in the future, builds up the characters of Dredd and rookie Anderson (Olivia Thirlby) while showcasing the decay of Mega City One’s society held ransom by the dame of disaster Ma-ma (Lena Heady). The ‘Robocop-meets-Die Hard’ approach was ultra violent, imaginative in its approach to 3D (Anthony Dod Mantle’s work with colour, speed and light to highlight 3D was rendered in a way that gave death a beauty to behold) and the film got repeat audiences in the UK as well as a stamp of approval from the character’s creator John Wagner.

Some criticised that the film didn’t hone the satire that existed in the comic books but worked on screen in Robocop, but then the ‘part man, part machine, all cop’ is in part a derivation of Judge Dredd. To draw further from the Mega City One’s original blueprint would create further comparisons with Robocop despite the classic character’s film introduction being one born out of Dredd’s world. If Robocop showed 2000AD fans one thing it was that Dredd and his world could be brought to life. It’s just a shame when it did arrive and get it right, comparisons are made with the one film that should have been seen as a classic homage to it.

Released close to the time when another futuristic remake hit the ground and got buried deep within, Total Recall failed in most departments but succeeded in adding to the world of the future that many wanted to see. Films such as Minority Report which predicted a decade where technology would rule and make our lives easier (surprise, surprise) nailed the future that appealed to many. You may forget the plot of Total Recall, characterisation, performances and its relation to the original, but its interpretation of the future with a viable mass transit system, flying cars and mind altering recreational experiences were all memorable aspects brought to life on screen. The filmmaker crafted the world Total Recall would be set in with meticulous detail but failed to populate it with characters and a plot we’d care about. Dredd 3D kicked you so your face was rubbed in the dirt that was Mega City One, the judicial system and the extent that free will and consequence was veiled by a thinly drawn line.

Dredd worked by not concentrating on the world at large but focusing on the characters (Dredd, Anderson, Ma-Ma) and their roles in it as well as their experiences which reflected what society and the future had become. We get to see the experienced bitter Judge, the ambitious and optimistic new recruit (who happens to be a mutant) and the drug peddlers who value human existence so little (including their own) that life is presented with society all being on death row and awaiting the executioner. Everything in the future is about the moment and prolonging it, which in Dredd is through the outlawed drug Slo-Mo. Even Ma-Ma has given up on her turf and position in it. She’s not clinging to life but has outlived it. Her backstory shows she’s escaped the past and is just watching the present happen, proud to poison it bit by bit as long as she reigns from a distance. What follows is a violent nightmarish bloodbath that injected gorgeous visuals as rays of hope into a future which was only made tolerable by a drug that allowed an individual to enjoy the moment – be it the moment they’re falling to their demise.

Given the introduction to Dredd and his world, it would be a shame to not see this premise developed in some form. When the film arrives on home media, its sure to create a buzz as those who did see the film were very vocal about enjoying it and repeat viewings followed. Just not enough to warrant the film being a blip on the radar in the US where it stood alone at the box office without a franchise, name or promotional campaign to get audiences into theaters.

Dredd is released on bluray, DVD and on-demand in January 2013.