Guilty Pleasures: Judge Dredd
By Felix Quinonez Jr.
August 20, 2012
BoxOfficeProphets.com
But even so, we all have our guilty pleasures. I’m talking about that song you stop humming when someone walks into the room. Or maybe it’s that movie you claim your significant other dragged you to. Whatever the case, we all have guilty pleasures and that includes me, of course. With this column I’m going to try to encourage people to stop being embarrassed for liking things they normally wouldn’t or that aren’t considered cool. I’m going to do this by celebrating movies that are my personal guilty pleasures.
Growing up, there was no one more badass than Sylvester Stallone. (Sorry AHHnold.) In my opinion he was the epitome of everything cool. Like most people I was first introduced to Stallone through Rocky. That movie made a huge impression on me. I love all of the movies in the series and ever since I saw Rocky go toe to toe with Apollo Creed, I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the Stallone and all of his action movies. Luckily for me, Stallone was a very productive actor and from 1976, when Rocky was released, until 1997 there were only two years in which he didn't star in at least one movie. (1977 and 1980) But during that time period there were several years in which he starred in multiple movies. (1978, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1989, 1993, 1995) So I think it's safe to say that Stallone was a very busy man.
But if Stallone action movies were one of my childhood staples, another equally important staple for me growing up was reading comic books. What can I say, I was a simple kid. I just wanted to watch Stallone kick ass and bury my head in comic books to watch some superheroes do the same. So when I heard that my main man Sylvester Stallone was going to star in a comic book movie, Judge Dredd, (1995) you know I was excited. I believe that some things are just meant to happen. Lois and Clark will always wind up together, what goes up will always come down and in this case I was always going to love Judge Dredd. I mean, this was the most badass actor (in my opinion) starring in a movie based on something I loved just as much as movies (comic books). Not only that, but it was one of the "dark and edgy" comic books that I was too young to read. So by the time I saw the first trailer it was already set in stone that I would love this movie...and I did (do.)
By the time I was born (1984), Stallone was already a superstar so I was introduced to most of his movies second hand on TV or VHS by my older brothers. But Judge Dredd was the first Stallone movie that I was fully aware of before its release. I remember watching the trailers and being blown away. I didn't get to see it in theaters. I was only 10 and it was rated R. But that didn't stop me from yelling out "I am the law!" to the few friends I had. And when Judge Dredd was released on VHS, my cousin and I snatched it up at Blockbuster as soon as we could.
Judge Dredd, directed by Danny Cannon, is based on a comic strip that first appeared in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD. The story is about a violent future in which judges have the powers of police, judge, jury, and executioners. Dredd and the other judges arrest, sentence and even execute criminals on the spot. Judge Dredd was created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. As you can see, the source material has potential to be both entertaining and to make some commentary on society. British magazine Empire actually named Judge Dredd the seventh greatest comic character and IGN ranked him 35th in the top 100 comic book heroes.
But if its critical reaction (15% rating at Rotten Tomatoes) or box office performance ($34 million domestic) are to be believed, then it's safe to say that the movie dropped the ball. But if you're anything like me you can still find Judge Dredd, which also stars Diane Lane and Rob Schneider, quite entertaining.
Like in the comic book, the movie is set in a violent future where judges have become police, judge, jury, and executioners. One of the most notorious judges is Dredd (Stallone) Dredd is the loosest of cannons. He takes matters into his own hands, bringing his own violent brand of justice to the streets...but man does he get results! Little does he know, though, that a corrupt judge is teaming up with a sinister villain (are there any other kind?) to frame and bring down Dredd. That villain is Rico (Armand Assante), a former Judge turned psychopathic murderer. The plan is to frame Dredd for murder. Because Rico and Dredd were both actually part of some sort of genetic experiment to create the perfect judge, they share the same DNA. This makes it quite easy for Rico to frame Dredd for murder. So now it is up to Dredd to clear his name, put up with Rob Schneider, mack it to Diane Lane, and of course serve justice.
But let's face it, these movies are basically set up to show us how tough the star is and in that respect, Stallone brings the goods. Since the movie rests squarely on the shoulders of Stallone, I think a good place to start is with his performance. Yes, it's true that the words "embarrassing and awkward" have been tossed around by critics discussing Stallone's acting in Judge Dredd. But I think badass is a better word for Stallone's performance. He is a man of a few very monotone words. He delivers them like he means business. He doesn't show a lot of emotion, but that's because he is a cold and hardened character. But most important, he kicks a lot of ass in this movie. Actors like Stallone built their careers out of being tough and beating people up and that's exactly what he does in this movie. Also, he looks kind of cool in the Judge Dredd gear.
Although all of the other characters play second fiddle to Stallone's Dredd, the supporting cast is quite strong too. Assante does a great job as the villain, Rico. He is not only intense but has a vulnerable side. Schneider plays his sidekick/comic relief role in his usual annoying manner and like always he overstays his welcome. But because this is Stallone's show, he dials back his Scheniderness quite a bit, so he's a little more tolerable. Like most actors of his kind, Stallone is kind of old school and this means his movies have some underlying sexism. Because of this, Diane Lane doesn't get to do much besides being the damsel in distress who falls for Stallone. But she does look good doing it.
But as much criticism as this movie gets, I believe it should have gotten at least as much praise for its set designs. The city really
does look great and it makes the movie have a kind of epic feel to it. The buildings loom over the city and show how little the people are. It captures that dark, cold and intimidating feel that this future is supposed to have. The movie also has great action and special effects that hold up remarkably well.
It's not a cinematic masterpiece, but I believe that - at least partially - the reason why it got such bad reviews is because people had made up their minds about the movie before seeing it. Judge Dredd was released at a point in Stallone's career where instead of cheering for him, people were waiting to see him fail.
Another reason why I really like this movie is that even if you consider it a failure or success, you have to agree that it at least took chances instead of playing it safe. It might not have been as profound as it believed itself to be but you have to give it some credit for trying. The movie actually does try to make some statements about how quickly people will abuse power. It also comments on the importance of keeping those with power in check.
If you see it with an open mind instead of rolling eyes, you might enjoy Judge Dredd for the cool action movie it is. And I will always support a movie that takes a shot and misses over one that is content with going down the beaten path.