Dredd is a 2012 British science fiction action film directed by Pete Travis and written by Alex Garland. It is based on the 2000 AD comic strip Judge Dredd and its eponymous character by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra. Karl Urban stars as Judge Dredd, a law enforcer given the power of judge, jury and executioner in the vast dystopian metropolis of Mega-City One that lies within a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Alongside rookie Judge Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), Dredd is forced to bring order to a feared 200-story slum and its resident drug lord, Ma-Ma (Lena Headey).
Garland began writing the script as early as 2006, although development of a new Judge Dredd film adaptation was not announced until December 2008, that would be unrelated to the 1995 film adaptation Judge Dredd. Principal photography began in November 2010, with an estimated US$45 million budget. The project was shot using 3D cameras throughout on practical sets, and on location in the South African cities of Cape Town and Johannesburg. Dredd was released on 7 September 2012 in the United Kingdom. It is scheduled for release worldwide on 21 September 2012.
Plot
The future world is an irradiated waste land known as the Cursed Earth. On an eastern coast lies Mega-City One – a vast, violent metropolis containing 800 million residents and where 17,000 crimes are reported every day. “Slo-Mo”, a new drug which slows the user’s perception of time to 1% of normal sweeps the city. The only force of order is the “Judges”, a police force who possess the combined powers of judge, jury, and executioner. During a routine shift, the famed and feared Judge Dredd is tasked by the Chief Judge with evaluating rookie Judge Cassandra Anderson, a powerful psychic who has failed the tests to become a full Judge. Elsewhere, in the 200-story slum tower block “Peach Trees”, ruthless drug lord Ma-Ma infuses three men with Slo-Mo and throws their skinned bodies from the top of the tower. Dredd and Anderson respond to the incident. Learning of a drug den on one of the floors, the Judges assault the room and arrest Kay, one of Ma-Ma’s henchmen, after Anderson psychically detects his involvement in the murders. To prevent Kay being removed from the building and interrogated about her operation, Ma-Ma’s forces seize the tower’s security control room and seal the building using its blast shields under the pretense of a security test, preventing the Judges from leaving or summoning help.
Ma-Ma demands that Dredd and Anderson are killed before the shields will be again opened. Several groups of armed men unsuccessfully try to kill the pair as the Judges attempt to locate a defensive position with Kay. The Judges proceed upwards through the building to find safety. After arriving at one floor, the Judges are assaulted by Ma-Ma and her men using high powered machine guns that cut through the building’s concrete walls and residents. The gunfire damages one of the tower’s outer walls allowing the Judges into an external area that enables them to call for backup. Ma-Ma sends her right-hand man Caleb to confirm the Judges’ deaths. Dredd and Anderson, with no other avenue of escape, reenter the building. Dredd overcomes Caleb and throws him from the tower in view of Ma-Ma.
Enraged at Ma-Ma’s massacre of the tower’s innocent residents, Dredd beats Kay for information. Anderson intervenes and uses her abilities to read Kay’s mind. She learns that Peach Trees is the center of production and distribution of Slo-Mo and it, the tower and all the gangs within are controlled by Ma-Ma. Anderson suggests they attempt to hide while awaiting assistance but Dredd insists on moving up the tower in pursuit of Ma-Ma. Judges Volt and Guthrie respond to Dredd’s call, but they are unable to access the tower and Ma-Ma’s Clan Techie persuades the pair that the call is part of the security drill. While Dredd and Anderson are confronted by armed children, Kay escapes his bonds and takes Anderson hostage. He escapes with her in an elevator to Ma-Ma’s base on the 200th floor.
While Dredd works his way towards Ma-Ma, she calls on the aid of corrupt Judges Lex, Kaplan, Chan and Alvarez, to kill Dredd. After meeting Chan, Dredd notices that he does not ask about Anderson’s status, instigating a fight in which Chan is killed. Meanwhile, Kay is killed when he attempts to execute Anderson with her own weapon, triggering a failsafe that explodes when it does not recognize the wielder. Anderson escapes and meets Judge Kaplan. She reads Kaplan’s mind and then kills her. Elsewhere, Dredd kills Alvarez but runs out of ammunition and is shot by Lex. Anderson arrives and kills Lex as he prepares to finish Dredd. The pair obtain the code to Ma-Ma’s apartment from Clan Techie and confront the drug lord. Anderson is wounded by one of Ma-Ma’s men. Ma-Ma tells Dredd that a device on her wrist will detonate explosives on the top floors upon her death which will in turn detonate the lower floors, destroying the building. Dredd argues that the signal will not reach the top floor’s explosives through the tower’s concrete floors and walls. He then infuses Ma-Ma with Slo-Mo and throws her from the building to her death. In the aftermath Anderson accepts she has failed her evaluation by being disarmed and freeing Clan Techie, and leaves to seek medical aid. The Chief Judge asks Dredd about Anderson’s performance, to which he responds that she has passed.
Cast
- Karl Urban as Judge Dredd:
- A famed and feared Judge, possessing the powers of Judge, Jury and Executioner.[6] Producer Allon Reich described Dredd as “an extreme character, and he administers justice with an extreme lack of prejudice.” Urban himself approached the producers about joining the film. He found the role challenging as the character never removes his helmet, requiring Urban to convey emotion without the use of his eyes. He approached the character as an average man with an insanely tough job in a fragmenting society, likening his heroism to that of a fireman. The role also demanded physical preparation, and Urban undertook intensive physical training to become a “beast of a man”,[7] as well as weapons and technical training to learn how to operate when under fire, how to arrest criminals and breach doors. He insisted on performing his own bike stunts for realism. For Dredd’s voice, he attained a raspy and harsh tone akin to “a saw cutting through bone” that he found difficult to sustain.[8]
- Olivia Thirlby as Judge Cassandra Anderson:
- A rookie Judge and genetic mutant with powerful psychic abilities.[9] Her abilities cause her to sense the emotions of others.[10] Thirlby contrasted her character with Dredd’s “black and white” perspective, describing Anderson as existing “in a grey area where everything is enhanced or clouded by the fact she knows what is going on in the very interior of a person”. She undertook weapons and combat training including learning how to perform a roundhouse kick to make her believably physically commanding. The character was partially inspired by singer Debbie Harry.[11]
- Lena Headey as Ma-Ma:
- A former prostitute turned drug lord and criminal kingpin who is the sole supplier of a new addictive drug, Slo-Mo.[12] Her performance was inspired by punk-rock singer Patti Smith. Reich described the character as someone who does “not care at all about what anybody thinks or feels and she will do, and behave, as she wants.”[13] Discussing her character, Headey said: “I think of her like an old great white shark who is just waiting for someone bigger and stronger to show up and kill her… she’s ready for it. In fact, she can’t wait for it to happen… She’s an addict, so she’s dead in that way, but that last knock just hasn’t come.”[14] Before Headey’s casting, the character was described as a heavily made-up and scarred, obese, older woman.[15] Her real name is Madelaine Madrigal.[16]
- Wood Harris as Kay:
- Ma-Ma’s clansman.[17] Harris described the character as a villain, but one that sees himself as no worse than the Judges. Harris said: “…Dredd goes around literally judging and killing people if they do wrong… Anyone who goes against the system might end up the bad guy. So I think Kay has justified fighting that in his mind.”[18]
The cast also includes: Domhnall Gleeson as Clan Techie, Ma-Ma’s computer expert;[19] Warrick Grier as Caleb, Ma-Ma’s right hand man; Langley Kirkwood, Edwin Perry, Karl Thaning and Michele Levin as respectively Judge Lex, Judge Alvarez, Judge Chan and Judge Kaplan, corrupt Judges in Ma-Ma’s employ; Junior Singo as Amos and Luke Tyler as Freel, two young boys who confront Dredd; Jason Cope as Zwirner; Joe Vaz as Big Joe and Scott Sparrow as Japhet, members of Ma-Ma’s gang; Francis Chouler as Judge Guthrie;[20] Rakie Ayola as the Chief Judge;[21] Deobia Oparei as TJ, the Peach Trees paramedic;[22] and Daniel Hadebe as Judge Volt.
Production
Development
Development on a new film was first announced on December 20, 2008 as an independent project under British studio DNA Films.[23][24] DNA Films collaborated with sales agency IM Global to sell the distribution rights to the film globally.[24] In September 2009, it was confirmed that Alex Garland was writing the film and that Judge Dredd comic artist Jock was developing concept art for scenes in the script.[25][26] However, by October 2009, there was no director attached to the film.[27] Development moved forward in May 2010, as it was announced that Reliance Big Pictures and it’s subsidiary IM Global would co-finance DNA Films’ 3-D project with a $45 million budget and a schedule to begin filming in late 2010 in the city of Johannesburg.[28][29] It was also announced that Pete Travis would direct the film and that Garland, Andrew MacDonald and Allon Reich would serve as producers.[29][30] Duncan Jones had previously been given an offer to direct.[31] In September 2010, it was reported that the film’s official title would be Dredd.[32]
During the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in September 2010, the film attracted $30 million in worldwide pre-sales to distributors before filming had even begun, reaching 90% of the available theatrical markets.[33][34] The sales included a $7 million deal with British distributor Entertainment Film Distributors. On 2 November 2010, Lionsgate secured the North American distribution rights to Dredd.[35] Judge Dredd creator John Wagner acted as a consultant on the film.[36] In 2012 he confirmed that the film was a new adaptation of the comic material and was not a remake or reboot of the 1995 adaptation Judge Dredd starring Sylvester Stallone.[37] In July 2011, the film was scheduled for a theatrical release on 21 September 2012 in North America.[38]
Pre-production commenced on 23 August 2010 at Cape Town Film Studios in Cape Town, South Africa.[39] During the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International in July, Urban confirmed that he had been offered the role of Judge Dredd and by 18 August 2010 it was reported that Urban officially had the role.[40] In September 2010, it was announced that Thirlby would play the part of Dredd’s telepathic rookie Cassandra Anderson.[5] Headey joined the cast as drug-dealer Ma-Ma in January 2011.[15]
Writing
“…what John [Wagner] does [in the comic] is have Dredd evolve, in the way that a glacier moves: you look a year later and something actually has shifted! I tried to be true to that.”
Garland began writing Dredd in 2006 during post-production of Sunshine and completed his first draft during filming of 28 Weeks Later. Garland’s draft revolved around one of Dredd’s prominent enemies, the undead Judge Death. He described the story as a “riff on the whole Judge system”, but that it did not work because the Judge system had not yet been established, requiring too much knowledge about the Judge Dredd comic from the audience. He also considered the end result too surreal and extreme. From this script, Garland decided that the story needed to be more focused and grounded. He instead considered adapting some of the notable Judge Dredd storylines including “Democracy” (1986) and “Origins” (2006), but he ultimately decided to avoid the long, epic nature of these tales in favour of a shorter, day-in-the-life story about Dredd and his function as a cop in the dystopian Mega City One. For Judge Dredd himself, Garland attempted to closely follow the comic Dredd’s nature of undergoing only small personality changes over a length of time. He said: ” I didn’t think Dredd could have a great epiphany, but there is definitely a change in him over the course of the movie. He makes a very clear statement at the beginning of the film which he then contradicts at the end. That’s about as far as the shift goes.”[37] Garland intentionally gave the traditional character development to Anderson instead to compensate.[24]
Discussing setting the film within the “Peach Tree Block” tower, Garland described the buildings as “like micro city states… you could live and die in those buildings”. He also considered that it met Wagner’s suggestion that Dredd‘s future should relate to modern ways of living. Garland drew the tower’s name from “The Peach Tree” restaurant in which he first met with Wagner. The budget limited his ability to represent some of the comic aspects of Mega City One such as robots and aliens.[37] Throughout the production, Garland would send his script to Wagner who would revise some of the dialogue, which Urban would then further revise during his performance.[37]
Filming
On a $45 million budget, filming began on 12 November 2010 in Cape Town, South Africa, and took place over approximately 13 weeks, with second unit photography occurring over 7 weeks.[2][35][5] Filming locations also included Johannesburg and Cape Town Film Studios in Cape Town.[41] The film was shot digitally and entirely in 3D using RED MX, SI2K, and Phantom Flex highspeed cameras, and multiple camera rigs in operation on the principal and second units.[2][42] DNA Films’ co-founder Andrew Macdonald brought in cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle to manage the shoot, his first time working with 3D.[2][43] The filmmakers wanted Dredd to have a “visceral” and realistic look and so turned to the stylish atmospheres of classic crime and gangster films for inspiration. For scenes conveying the time and space altering effects of Slo-Mo, Dod Mantle aimed to create an image that would be beautiful but disorienting.[44]
The volatile Mega City One and its high rises were created in Cape Town Film Studios. A key sequence involving Ma-Ma and her gang killing hundreds of people while attempting to kill Judge Dredd required ten days of filming and eight different sets inside and outside the Cape Town studio which were then blended together with visual effects.[44] Dod Mantle had to develop new rigs to obtain close-up shots. Describing the aesthetic he aimed to achieve, he said: “I hope it will be more painterly. If we get it right, it will be a cross between Blade Runner and Clockwork Orange.”[2] Garland was a constant presence on the shoot, with Urban admitting that he would turn to Garland for direction instead of Travis.[45]
Design
For Dredd’s appearance it was decided that he should appear more lean and fast like a boxer rather than bulky like “someone who spends hours sort of steroiding himself up.” His Judge uniform was altered from the comic version, including the removal of an eagle from his shoulder pad to emphasise the outfit’s functionality and grant it a sense of realism.[37] Garland said: “If you did a very faithful adaptation of the uniform you’d have someone who if he got stabbed in the stomach he’d be in big trouble. Dredd is out there on the frontline so he needed protection.”[24] Remaining faithful to the comic,[36] Judge Dredd keeps his helmet on throughout the film, obscuring all but his mouth and chin.[46] Urban said: “He is supposed to be the faceless representative of the law and I think that is part of his enigma … You wouldn’t get to the end of a Sergio Leone Western and go, ‘God, I didn’t even know the character’s name!’ It’s irrelevant.”[47]
Dredd’s signature weapon, the “Lawgiver” was developed as a fully operational weapon based on a 9mm firing system, capable of firing ammunition and being changed from automatic to semi-auto fire.[48] His bike “Lawmaster” was a modified 500cc bike. A large frame was added over the bike with machine guns, an extended wheel base and the largest functional tyres possible. The vehicle was also operational and Urban insisted on riding it himself rather than relying on green screen visual effects. Wagner described the necessity for adaptation from the source material, describing the 1995 film’s attempt at directly replicating the comic bike as unable to steer because the tyres were too large.[48]
Garland and VFX supervisor Jon Thum began developing the Slo-Mo concept sequences in 2009 during filming for Never Let Me Go. They experimented with the hallucinogenic induced visual effect to see how long it could be used before it distracted the viewer from the active story or action sequence. They continued to develop and modify the effect until the end of post-production, tweaking colours and colour saturation, the framing of the image and the movement of the camera.[24] Garland said the concept was inspired by nature documentaries that used high-speed photography to capture animals in slow motion. He said: “You see a whale or a shark breach the water… then you’d stop thinking about the animal and you get transfixed by… how water droplets connect and touch against each other. Somehow like a real [drug] trip, sort of stepping outside it but staying attached at the same time.” He questioned if the technique could be used with violence to make it purely an aesthetic. He said “Can it be so abstract that it becomes genuinely beautiful? …really aesthetically beautiful even if someone is having their cheek blown out or their head crushing into concrete.”[49]
Marketing
The first photos from the set were revealed on 19 November 2010.[53] Footage from the film was first seen at the London Film and Comic Con in July 2012.[citation needed] In August 2012, the viral site “Dredd Report” was launched, satirizing the Drudge Report. The site featured links to news, and a video condemning the use of the fictional Slo-Mo drug.[54] A tie in comic book written by Judge Dredd Megazine editor Matt Smith and art by 2000 AD artist Henry Flint was released on 5 September 2012. The plot serves as a prequel to the events of the film and follows Ma-Ma as a prostitute under her pimp Lester Grimes who inflicted her facial scar. Ma-Ma enters a relationship with a man named Eric who creates Slo-Mo. Lester kills Eric for interfering with his business and Ma-Ma castrates Lester with her teeth in retaliation, leaving her with the Slo-Mo operation.[16][55]
Release
Dredd premiered at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCC) on 11 July 2012.[56] It was also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2012,[57] and is scheduled to be shown at the 2012 Fantastic Fest in late September.[58] The film was first theatrically released on 7 September 2012 in the United Kingdom. It is scheduled for a North American release on 21 September 2012.[3]
Release
Dredd premiered at the 2012 San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCC) on 11 July 2012.[56] It was also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2012,[57] and is scheduled to be shown at the 2012 Fantastic Fest in late September.[58] The film was first theatrically released on 7 September 2012 in the United Kingdom. It is scheduled for a North American release on 21 September 2012.[3]
Dany Corporation - The Future is Already Available Here 