dredd import region A

I just saw this movie and can only say that it's probably one of the best action films i have ever seen - it's certainly the best since the Bourne films.Having read some off putting reviews I decided to go with it anyway. To be fair the negative reviews seemed to focus mainly on the DVD quality which i why i went for the none blu-ray/3D, the quality of which was excellent.First off, if this is a budget film i see no evidence of lack of cash being spent on visuals. Present day street scenes have been used but they look superb, and why not use them? For the look of this particular film the locations and sets are spectacularly gritty. Almost Matrix beating. There are no super space-age shiny uniforms as per the Stallone version. Everything is functional and fits in with this devastated and socially diseased vision of earth.Characters are believable. Karl Urban does for Dredd what Val Kilmer did for Jim Morrison, or what Johnny Depp did for Hunter S Thompson - he IS Dredd! In fact there are no characters that seem out of place here. I particularly enjoyed the portrayal of Ma Ma, gang leader of the Ma Ma clan. This is someone who is a product of Mega City One - corrupted, twisted and scarred by her environment, and have no doubt that this is a sick place.Effects are stunning with the best of being focused around the use of 'Slow-mo', the brand new drug of choice. What i love here is the use of some practical effects. Use of blood and gore goes straight to 11. Judge's weapons are beautifully crafted yet fairly understated. They look like they would actually work. Again, with the budget i fail to see where film makers have been frugal.A lot of reviews point out the anti-climax with Ma Ma ..blah blah blah. Those people fail to understand what life as a Judge in Mega City One is all about. In my opinion this film IS simply a day in the life of a Mega City judge, albeit possibly the hardest Judge of all. This film is not trying to be pretty or to please all. It's an introduction to show what could be possible if somehow a wider audience could be met. Unfortunately the downside with Dredd is that it's likely to become a cult movie because it won't appeal to the main stream. To me that means 'no follow up'. And that is gutting.I just wish that sequels could be made. So much could be done with this world. The stories and characters are already there. Ground has been laid with this first fantastic film. My only advise is that if you appreciate what is going on here you should sell it to others. I don't think Dredd is dead just yet!

There's plenty of other reviews where they've practically written an essay about this film, so I'll give the short version. If you're looking for a thoughtful action movie, or one with plenty of character development, then this isn't it. If you want to see hordes of bad dudes getting shot, along with some drily amusing humour, then this it.The story is lean with no more or less to it than it needs to succeed. The direction is slick and the action is brutal. It's based on a comic and will satisfy those fans, but it's also simple enough to be very accessible for those who are unaware of its origins.If there was one disappointment to be had from it, it's generally well made but the special effects for wounds are often cgi and very fake looking. Compared to an older classic like Robocop it has a bigger scale to the action, yet the lack of practical effects in this regard is noticeable. Other than that its an entertaining film if you don't mind what is ultimately gratuitous violence.

Just a quick review. Thoroughly enjoyed the look, feel and atmosphere of Dredd. Well cast with a plot that kept my attention. Reminded me in spirit of 80's films like Robocop. I liked the grittiness and having read 2000AD avidly as a youngster I am glad that this film has been made by fans and/or people who 'get' Judge Dredd.Fingers crossed for a sequel.I've done a bit of research since I first posted this review.It's fairly depressing that this film won't get a sequel. There are so many poor films getting sequels (Resident Evil, Scary Movie, etc) and so many remakes being released. I understand the reasons why it didn't do well at the box office, poor marketing, niche fan base very limited 2d screenings (I was living in South London when it was released and couldn't find any within a half an hour radius of where I lived) and at the end of the day this is a business where profit dictates any chance of sequels. Another thing, I've just moved to Australia and was speaking to a guy who's massively into sci-fi (both film and literature) and he didn't even know the film existed!The film-makers themselves must be bitterly disappointed. They did their job fantastically only to be let down by the studio/distributors.There seems to be a dearth of decent sci-fi films in this mold that is aimed at adults. I quite like the Marvel films that we are being swamped with at the moment, but find them to be to light-weight and glossy. For me CGI takes me out of the film experience and that was another thing I loved about Dredd. It was sparingly used, making its impact when it was used not intrusive to the story at all. The slow motion scenes were beautiful.The whole film was incredibly immersive (maybe the fact I had read a lot of Dredd comics helped me with this, my imagination filling in the parts of this world that weren't shown on screen). Good chemistry between Urban and Thirlby. A very good villain in Ma-Ma and a supporting cast who could act and who would definitely be able to hold bigger roles in any other film/tv series (i.e the hand-cuffed perp who played Avon in The Wire).I'm sure this will become a cult classic and by looking at the reviews on here and sales figures, it looks inevitable.Even though there won't be a sequel/s (the producer has stated such) at least we have this gem. I just wish I was a very rich man and I would fund them myself.