I am the law!
March 17, 2018 10:59 AM Subscribe
So was it Alex Garland who actually directed Dredd? Karl Urban says so (and he also wants to keep playing the character).
Tharg bonus: The Judge Dredd arcade game that never was
Tharg bonus: The Judge Dredd arcade game that never was
I wandered into a showing when it had its theater run. I didn't expect a lot, but it was the only thing that looked vaguely interesting that weekend and the show time was right.
I don't spend a lot of time on genre sites, so I've been isolated from the fan consensus and have gone it alone with my admiration of Dredd. I've never read any of the comics, so I'm even isolated from the source material. I just think it's a pretty good piece of work and I was surprised that I have rewatched it a couple of times, because I went in with low expectations.
Re: Garland as a common thread, there's a visual similarity between Dredd's Slo-Mo and Annihilation's Shimmer for sure but that could mean anything.
Guess I'd be okay with more from that world. It stands out from the direct-to-streaming genre scrum that's been forming between Netflix and Amazon, and feels more solid and well crafted than a lot of SF that does make it to the theater. Unlike, e.g. Oblivion, I didn't feel obligated to hoot at it from my seat.
posted by mph at 11:36 AM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
I don't spend a lot of time on genre sites, so I've been isolated from the fan consensus and have gone it alone with my admiration of Dredd. I've never read any of the comics, so I'm even isolated from the source material. I just think it's a pretty good piece of work and I was surprised that I have rewatched it a couple of times, because I went in with low expectations.
Re: Garland as a common thread, there's a visual similarity between Dredd's Slo-Mo and Annihilation's Shimmer for sure but that could mean anything.
Guess I'd be okay with more from that world. It stands out from the direct-to-streaming genre scrum that's been forming between Netflix and Amazon, and feels more solid and well crafted than a lot of SF that does make it to the theater. Unlike, e.g. Oblivion, I didn't feel obligated to hoot at it from my seat.
posted by mph at 11:36 AM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
I've been isolated from the fan consensus and have gone it alone with my admiration of Dredd
Joooooiiiiin uuuuuuuuuss! It is an almost-perfect action movie.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 11:40 AM on March 17, 2018 [15 favorites]
Joooooiiiiin uuuuuuuuuss! It is an almost-perfect action movie.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 11:40 AM on March 17, 2018 [15 favorites]
To paraphrase part of the article, It's more important to make a good film first, instead of just aping the source for a faithful adaptation
I really liked Annihilation and Dredd; I guess I'll keep an eye on Alex Garland in the future, even though I wasn't a big fan of Ex Machina.
I'd love to see a premium television series in the style of 2012 Dredd by HBO/Starz/Amazon etc. It's probably even a good time to do so, since HBO is going ahead with the Watchmen series, it could actually be a good alternative.
posted by Query at 11:43 AM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
I really liked Annihilation and Dredd; I guess I'll keep an eye on Alex Garland in the future, even though I wasn't a big fan of Ex Machina.
I'd love to see a premium television series in the style of 2012 Dredd by HBO/Starz/Amazon etc. It's probably even a good time to do so, since HBO is going ahead with the Watchmen series, it could actually be a good alternative.
posted by Query at 11:43 AM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
Dredd is a great movie interpretation of the character/ world and near perfect, lean action movie (and adapted from a work my Mefi’s own)
posted by The Whelk at 11:44 AM on March 17, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 11:44 AM on March 17, 2018 [3 favorites]
PLEASE GO SEE ANNIHILATION, WHILE YOU STILL CAN
posted by vogon_poet at 11:45 AM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by vogon_poet at 11:45 AM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
After Ex Machina and Annihilation, I can very easily see Dredd as being the secret first part of that trilogy. It looks and feels like Alex Garland's other flicks to a fairly uncanny degree.
posted by chainlinkspiral at 12:10 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by chainlinkspiral at 12:10 PM on March 17, 2018
Have not seen Annhiliation, but it and Ex Machina and Dredd all had design work done by comics artist Jock, so I could see how there would be some bleed through. He’s probably most famous now for designing Leia’s cloak in The Last Jedi.
I’ve had enough conversations with people on the periphery of the movie where it’s just generally accepted that Garland directed it that I’ve kind of forgotten that it isn’t common knowledge. Oh, and if you hunt around on the internet there’s some footage of Urban saying so on stage at ECCC, with me and Jock in the background.
Anyway, I love this movie and I love having had an after-the-fact relationship with it. There’s a sequel with Judge Death running in the Judge Dredd Megazine at the moment, and Jock will be doing covers for the US editions of that, and the way that it works out he will be the last person to do artwork for the Dredd movie verse as well as the first, so that’s cool.
posted by Artw at 12:11 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
I’ve had enough conversations with people on the periphery of the movie where it’s just generally accepted that Garland directed it that I’ve kind of forgotten that it isn’t common knowledge. Oh, and if you hunt around on the internet there’s some footage of Urban saying so on stage at ECCC, with me and Jock in the background.
Anyway, I love this movie and I love having had an after-the-fact relationship with it. There’s a sequel with Judge Death running in the Judge Dredd Megazine at the moment, and Jock will be doing covers for the US editions of that, and the way that it works out he will be the last person to do artwork for the Dredd movie verse as well as the first, so that’s cool.
posted by Artw at 12:11 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
The new Dredd is severely underrated.
My impression is that Dredd was underpublicized, but near-universally loved by everyone who's seen it.
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 12:17 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
My impression is that Dredd was underpublicized, but near-universally loved by everyone who's seen it.
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 12:17 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
PLEASE GO SEE ANNIHILATION, WHILE YOU STILL CAN
Ehhm, it isn't available here in the Netherlands ? It popped up on Netflix for me, though.
posted by Pendragon at 12:44 PM on March 17, 2018
Ehhm, it isn't available here in the Netherlands ? It popped up on Netflix for me, though.
posted by Pendragon at 12:44 PM on March 17, 2018
There’s a bit of a weird situation with the international release.
posted by Artw at 12:47 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by Artw at 12:47 PM on March 17, 2018
Both Dredd and Karl Urban are way underappreciated in my books (his McCoy is the best part of the Abrams Trek films). And it's not hard at all to believe that Garland directed. I really hope they do another together.
posted by rodlymight at 12:54 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by rodlymight at 12:54 PM on March 17, 2018 [7 favorites]
I haven't seen Dredd but I have seen Pete Travis' Vantage Point, which should have been a fun movie, but, instead, really really wasn't.
posted by zardoz at 1:10 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by zardoz at 1:10 PM on March 17, 2018
If we're connecting Annihilation and Dredd, I've seen both described as videogame-like.
posted by RobotHero at 1:10 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by RobotHero at 1:10 PM on March 17, 2018
Everyone has seen him in Thor:Ragnarok? He has a lot of fun with that.
(Oh, and he’s also in Doom. Maybe less good.)
posted by Artw at 1:12 PM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
(Oh, and he’s also in Doom. Maybe less good.)
posted by Artw at 1:12 PM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
Juddging by the trailer, Annihilation is basically a sequel where there's a big explosion at the Slo-Mo factory and then things get really weird.
posted by ethansr at 1:38 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by ethansr at 1:38 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
I wasn't all that blown away by Dredd when I saw it but I should probably give it another chance. I loved Ex Machina and Annihilation is my favorite science fiction film since Arrival so I count myself as an Alex Garland fan.
posted by octothorpe at 2:09 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by octothorpe at 2:09 PM on March 17, 2018
yeah, Annihilation is being distributed internationally on Netflix, which is unfortunate. the studio gave up on it. but it's really good! watch it on netflix!
posted by vogon_poet at 2:16 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by vogon_poet at 2:16 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
Dredd really is just about the perfect modern action movie -- I'd compare it to The Raid and John Wick films in terms of similar economy of story-telling.
Building on what the author of this article says, I think it's also a great example of how to adapt comic books because of that economy. It does just what all the Marvel movies don't do: tells a compelling, contained story, while simultaneously evoking a world big enough to carry a franchise (although I don't think Dredd was meant as a franchise-starter, or that it would have much chance of being big enough to launch one). There's no extended origin story, no attempt to give the hero some cliched "tragic flaw" or involve him/her in some fucking endless intergenerational family soap opera to generate motivation. The movie has the guts to just assume its world, and its main character, and trust that the audience can pick up and extrapolate. In part it can take that chance because the smaller, more in-the-know fanbase that Dredd brings can be trusted to have that knowledge, but I think a total Dredd-ignoramus could come to this film and enjoy it. And the narrative is tight, with little extraneous bullshit. The opening scene leads right into the main conflict and isn't just a throw-away action piece to show how bad-ass the character is.
I know that the Marvel/Disney bigwigs have their franchises to think about, and so feel like they have to tie all the films together, but I think there's a lot to be learned from the example of this film.
On the other hand, does anyone else feel a bit unsettled by how much they enjoy watching a fascist cop murder a bunch of drug dealers? It's not that I (consciously) identify with Dredd or (consciously) share his power fantasy, but damn if it isn't a compellingly told action story in a brutal, ugly world.
posted by Saxon Kane at 2:32 PM on March 17, 2018 [11 favorites]
Building on what the author of this article says, I think it's also a great example of how to adapt comic books because of that economy. It does just what all the Marvel movies don't do: tells a compelling, contained story, while simultaneously evoking a world big enough to carry a franchise (although I don't think Dredd was meant as a franchise-starter, or that it would have much chance of being big enough to launch one). There's no extended origin story, no attempt to give the hero some cliched "tragic flaw" or involve him/her in some fucking endless intergenerational family soap opera to generate motivation. The movie has the guts to just assume its world, and its main character, and trust that the audience can pick up and extrapolate. In part it can take that chance because the smaller, more in-the-know fanbase that Dredd brings can be trusted to have that knowledge, but I think a total Dredd-ignoramus could come to this film and enjoy it. And the narrative is tight, with little extraneous bullshit. The opening scene leads right into the main conflict and isn't just a throw-away action piece to show how bad-ass the character is.
I know that the Marvel/Disney bigwigs have their franchises to think about, and so feel like they have to tie all the films together, but I think there's a lot to be learned from the example of this film.
On the other hand, does anyone else feel a bit unsettled by how much they enjoy watching a fascist cop murder a bunch of drug dealers? It's not that I (consciously) identify with Dredd or (consciously) share his power fantasy, but damn if it isn't a compellingly told action story in a brutal, ugly world.
posted by Saxon Kane at 2:32 PM on March 17, 2018 [11 favorites]
Saxon Kane, I've always had similar thoughts when enjoying Dredd comics and I think that's a core tension that is at the heart of the best Dredd stories.
posted by kittensofthenight at 3:21 PM on March 17, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by kittensofthenight at 3:21 PM on March 17, 2018 [3 favorites]
As much as I enjoyed Dredd, it struck me as too similar to the comic Marshal Law for comfort.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 3:25 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 3:25 PM on March 17, 2018
I think it's the other way round. Chronologically at the very least.
I've found Dredd to be one of the most rewatchable movies of recent years - the only others that turn up regularly on TV at the weekends that I'll happily rewatch endlessly are the Craig Bond movies (Casino Royale and Skyfall at least). I would be very happy to see more of it, especially with Urban in the role (and if they can get Olivia Thirlby too, all the better).
Not underrated, though. Properly rated, but not widely enough.
posted by Grangousier at 3:54 PM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
I've found Dredd to be one of the most rewatchable movies of recent years - the only others that turn up regularly on TV at the weekends that I'll happily rewatch endlessly are the Craig Bond movies (Casino Royale and Skyfall at least). I would be very happy to see more of it, especially with Urban in the role (and if they can get Olivia Thirlby too, all the better).
Not underrated, though. Properly rated, but not widely enough.
posted by Grangousier at 3:54 PM on March 17, 2018 [4 favorites]
What I would give for a Marshal Law movie
posted by schoolgirl report at 4:36 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by schoolgirl report at 4:36 PM on March 17, 2018
What I would give for a Marshal Law movie
The tone would be lost on modern western audiences.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 4:45 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
The tone would be lost on modern western audiences.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 4:45 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
As much as I enjoyed Dredd, it struck me as too similar to the comic Marshal Law for comfort.
I'm about 95% sure that Marshal Law was a satire of Judge Dredd. In his initial book, every super he fought was a satire on a marvel superhero.
posted by nushustu at 4:48 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
I'm about 95% sure that Marshal Law was a satire of Judge Dredd. In his initial book, every super he fought was a satire on a marvel superhero.
posted by nushustu at 4:48 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
MeFite trivia: Art and I went to see Dredd in the theater together! Then later, Art made me a Judge in one of his movie-universe Dredd books (the first one, if I recall correctly). Judge Whybark died horribly when his throat was cut by a bad guy!
Art successfully did NOT tell me about the scene despite my dropping in on his signing on release and so when I read it I literally jumped off the couch and shouted WHAT before collapsing into a pile of giggles that lasted like half an hour.
posted by mwhybark at 5:16 PM on March 17, 2018 [10 favorites]
Art successfully did NOT tell me about the scene despite my dropping in on his signing on release and so when I read it I literally jumped off the couch and shouted WHAT before collapsing into a pile of giggles that lasted like half an hour.
posted by mwhybark at 5:16 PM on March 17, 2018 [10 favorites]
I really do love murder.
posted by Artw at 5:21 PM on March 17, 2018 [10 favorites]
posted by Artw at 5:21 PM on March 17, 2018 [10 favorites]
The way Dredd does economical exposition through plot is so goddamn skillful.
posted by leotrotsky at 5:25 PM on March 17, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by leotrotsky at 5:25 PM on March 17, 2018 [5 favorites]
There's no extended origin story
It’s been ages since I’ve seen it, but I thought it would have made for a pretty solid origin story for a spiniff about the sidekick psychic lady judge.
posted by juv3nal at 6:05 PM on March 17, 2018
It’s been ages since I’ve seen it, but I thought it would have made for a pretty solid origin story for a spiniff about the sidekick psychic lady judge.
posted by juv3nal at 6:05 PM on March 17, 2018
I liked Dredd a lot - I likely watched it via a recommendation here. I was very surprised how good of a film it was. One of those instances where everybody seems to be creatively on the same page. I had a similar experience with John Hyams' 2 Universal Soldier films and Punisher: War Zone. 3 films that were way more enjoyable then they had any right to be.
I saw Annihilation tonight at the second run theatre in town (I delayed watching it until I finished the books). While I wanted something different then what I watched, I like the books a lot, I enjoyed the pacing and the visuals of the film though was underwhelmed by the characters. I think it is still worth seeing and I think it a bit harsh to call it a video game movie - its way better than any Uwe Boll movie by a long shot.
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:00 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
I saw Annihilation tonight at the second run theatre in town (I delayed watching it until I finished the books). While I wanted something different then what I watched, I like the books a lot, I enjoyed the pacing and the visuals of the film though was underwhelmed by the characters. I think it is still worth seeing and I think it a bit harsh to call it a video game movie - its way better than any Uwe Boll movie by a long shot.
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:00 PM on March 17, 2018 [1 favorite]
Yes, Punisher: War Zone was tons of fun. I love both Dominic West and Ray Stevenson, and, like a lot of the other great action films of late, it has a female director, Lexi Alexander!
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:55 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:55 PM on March 17, 2018
Who, according to Wikipedia, is working on a biopic about the pro-wrestler Chris Benoit. Wow. that sounds amazingly intense.
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:56 PM on March 17, 2018
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:56 PM on March 17, 2018
If you like Karl Urban do yourself a favor and watch The Price of Milk. It's from before he got cast as a stoic action star, and his performance in it is just delightful. I haven't seen him do anything remotely like it.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 12:14 AM on March 18, 2018
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 12:14 AM on March 18, 2018
As a big 2000AD fan I really enjoyed Dredd. The decision to make the film have a punkish 80s visual aesthetic fits the spirit of the comic much better than a slavish reproduction of the comics imagery would have. Also as others have suggested the decision to go with a simple single-prog 6 page type story rather than one of the big arcs is definitely the best approach; Dreads appeal to me has always been in the rich variety of the short stories that show the scale and texture of the city as much as the mega-epics where Dredd more often takes a typically heroic role.
It’s been a while but as I recall it the films only off point for me was the climactic confrontation where ...
*** SPOILERS ***
... Dredd doses Ma-Ma with slomo before chucking her down the blocks central shaft. This felt very un Dredd-ish to me; kind of showy rather than functional, driven by a kind of personal revenge rather than an inevitable expression of the fascist system.
posted by tomp at 6:38 AM on March 18, 2018 [4 favorites]
It’s been a while but as I recall it the films only off point for me was the climactic confrontation where ...
*** SPOILERS ***
... Dredd doses Ma-Ma with slomo before chucking her down the blocks central shaft. This felt very un Dredd-ish to me; kind of showy rather than functional, driven by a kind of personal revenge rather than an inevitable expression of the fascist system.
posted by tomp at 6:38 AM on March 18, 2018 [4 favorites]
I think Dredd, Ex Machina and Annihilation are all outstanding. I really hope we see more Dredd movies (maybe with a little Judge Death?)
posted by Liquidwolf at 10:39 AM on March 18, 2018
posted by Liquidwolf at 10:39 AM on March 18, 2018
Collecting the comics and playing the Dredd game is one of my best 9th grade memories. Urban’s portrayal was perfect, and I too want sequels!
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 11:31 AM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 11:31 AM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
TBH I think hopes for that were getting slim before they announce they were going to try and do a TV show , and then the n when the show was announced that was less the final nail in the coffin so much as an acknowledgement the coffin was thoroughly sealed. I think it’s not a coincidence that the latest movie tie-in comic is going to be the last one.
It does have Judge Death though, so enjoy that. I’m pretty proud of how we’ve been able to do a version of him that suits the movieverse.
posted by Artw at 11:34 AM on March 18, 2018
It does have Judge Death though, so enjoy that. I’m pretty proud of how we’ve been able to do a version of him that suits the movieverse.
posted by Artw at 11:34 AM on March 18, 2018
What I would give for a Marshal Law movie
While I enjoyed the Marshal Law comics to a certain extent (mostly because of the art by Kevin O'Neill, whose inventiveness and penchant for throwing in background sight-gags would come to full fruition in the LoEG/Nemo books that he did with Alan Moore), I think that it's a bit Johnny One-Note in its hatred of superheroes, and even though it makes gestures toward mocking the tropes of its title character it ends up endorsing that particular power fantasy figure as being somehow inherently superior to the ones with capes. (If that sounds familiar, yes, it's basically The Boys about twenty years earlier.)
As for Dredd, I'm encouraged to give it a try. And if Judge Death is in a sequel, I hope that they find a way to work in this unforgettable comics scene.
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:27 PM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
While I enjoyed the Marshal Law comics to a certain extent (mostly because of the art by Kevin O'Neill, whose inventiveness and penchant for throwing in background sight-gags would come to full fruition in the LoEG/Nemo books that he did with Alan Moore), I think that it's a bit Johnny One-Note in its hatred of superheroes, and even though it makes gestures toward mocking the tropes of its title character it ends up endorsing that particular power fantasy figure as being somehow inherently superior to the ones with capes. (If that sounds familiar, yes, it's basically The Boys about twenty years earlier.)
As for Dredd, I'm encouraged to give it a try. And if Judge Death is in a sequel, I hope that they find a way to work in this unforgettable comics scene.
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:27 PM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
Saxon Kane, I've always had similar thoughts when enjoying Dredd comics and I think that's a core tension that is at the heart of the best Dredd stories.
cf Banks' Culture books, where there's always at least one episode of morally-justified torture violence, usually a lot more.
Incidentally if you were wondering about that astonishing sound they use for the slo mo, it's Paulstretch. I don't know if anyone's reversed it to see what it is at normal speed.
posted by Sebmojo at 4:29 PM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
cf Banks' Culture books, where there's always at least one episode of morally-justified torture violence, usually a lot more.
Incidentally if you were wondering about that astonishing sound they use for the slo mo, it's Paulstretch. I don't know if anyone's reversed it to see what it is at normal speed.
posted by Sebmojo at 4:29 PM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]
On the other hand, does anyone else feel a bit unsettled by how much they enjoy watching a fascist cop murder a bunch of drug dealers? It's not that I (consciously) identify with Dredd or (consciously) share his power fantasy, but damn if it isn't a compellingly told action story in a brutal, ugly world.
I think the original creators of the comic wanted to do it as a satire of Dirty Harry - the idea that we’re okay with anything police do provided that the criminals are slightly worse.
posted by um at 6:58 PM on March 18, 2018
I think the original creators of the comic wanted to do it as a satire of Dirty Harry - the idea that we’re okay with anything police do provided that the criminals are slightly worse.
posted by um at 6:58 PM on March 18, 2018
Dredd doses Ma-Ma with slomo before chucking her down the blocks central shaft. This felt very un Dredd-ish to me; kind of showy rather than functional, driven by a kind of personal revenge rather than an inevitable expression of the fascist system.
I respectfully disagree! I think it's exactly the kind of excessive violence that is so typical of fascism (concentration camps, gruesome medical experiments, torture, etc.) and fascist desire.
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:41 PM on March 20, 2018
I respectfully disagree! I think it's exactly the kind of excessive violence that is so typical of fascism (concentration camps, gruesome medical experiments, torture, etc.) and fascist desire.
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:41 PM on March 20, 2018
Here's a question for longtime fans of the comic: was there something a few years back about Dredd's character being revealed to be gay? In the film, when the rookie cop first "reads" his mind, she says that she senses "something else" beneath Dredd's conscious personality, but the higher-up officer stops her before she says what it is. Was that possibly a nod to the comics?
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:46 PM on March 20, 2018
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:46 PM on March 20, 2018
There's an argument that supports both views, innit?
"I am the Law" taken at mythic face value indeed presumes impartial asexuality. But errbody knows the Law has a tendency to protect the way things are, and that means the Law has an historical prediliction for wealthy white men. QED.
posted by mwhybark at 10:48 PM on March 21, 2018
"I am the Law" taken at mythic face value indeed presumes impartial asexuality. But errbody knows the Law has a tendency to protect the way things are, and that means the Law has an historical prediliction for wealthy white men. QED.
posted by mwhybark at 10:48 PM on March 21, 2018
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Both of these statements are true.
posted by Fizz at 11:04 AM on March 17, 2018 [9 favorites]