The opening credits show the covers of multiple Judge Dredd comics. It only takes the film a few minutes to abandon one of the core elements of the comic backstory. In the comic, Judge Dredd never takes his helmet off. As The Mandalorian and the reboot film Dredd with Karl Urban proves, the main character can wear a helmet for the whole production and not need to show his face to be a success. An audience will know that is Sylvester Stallone underneath the helmet, he didn’t need to take it off to show his face. I like him in the role, but the second he takes off the helmet is when the power of Dredd is diminished. Earth is a nasty place, and to stem the tide of lawlessness we have these judges who can decide your fate on the spot. The tone of this film is inconsistent, and to attempt a PG-13 rating hurts the legacy of the comic book. It’s a dystopian look at Earth after societal and environmental collapse and how the people of the planet try to survive. Where do I start? The biggest problem I have with this movie is that it tried to take a comic book property that is filled with blood and violence and tone it down to an action comedy. In many ways, Schneider’s Fergie is the voice of the audience who questions Dredd’s tone-deaf views on law and order, and proceeds to insult Dredd for being so clueless about the reality of life. Rob Schneider is funny, and the perfect comic relief in the film. It’s up to Dredd, Hershey, and Fergie to save Mega City One from Rico. Teaming up with Judge Hershey they learn that Rico has gained control of the Central Computer and plans to unleash a new batch of Judges from the defunct cloning program named Janus. Fargo and Dredd don’t know that they have been duped by Griffin, who is allied with Rico.ĭredd and Fergie escape from their crashed prison transport and make their way back to Mega City One. Chief Justice Fargo (Max von Sydow) spares Dredd from execution by retiring, leaving Judge Griffin (Jurgen Prochnow) to assume the mantle of leadership at the Hall of Justice. Locked away in the Aspen prison colony Rico has plotted his revenge and frames Dredd for murder. Ten years ago, Dredd judged his only friend Rico (Armand Assante), a fellow judge whose penchant for brutality was too much for the system. While he is awed and feared by fellow judges like Hershey (Diane Lane) and criminals like Fergie (Rob Schneider), Dredd has a secret. One judge, Dredd (Sylvester Stallone), is legendary for his harsh judgments on law breakers. In Mega City One crime is out of control and an elite group of law enforcers, the Judges, have the power to arrest, judge, and convict criminals on the spot. A few oversized mega cities hold most of the world’s population. In the distant future, Earth is a wasteland. On paper, this film had all the ingredients of a blockbuster. Starring Sylvester Stallone, Judge Dredd was based on a popular British comic book about a dystopian future of lawlessness and an elite group of judges who tried to bring order to the chaos. In 1995, Disney’s second adult themed movie label, Hollywood Pictures, was jumping into the comic book adaptation world with what seemed like a surefire hit. WandaVision has premiered on Disney+ to critical acclaim, but not all superhero films have been a success for Disney.
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