Dredd 3D
Directed by Pete Travis
Written by Alex Garland
Starring Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Wood Harris, Lena Headey, Domhnall Gleeson
Lionsgate | DNA Films
Rated R | 95 Minutes
Release Date: September 21, 2012

Created by John Wagner and Carlos Ezquerra, Judge Dredd first appeared in 1977 in the science-fiction anthology 2000 AD. A law enforcer given the power of judge, jury, and executioner, Dredd patrols the dystopian metropolis of Mega-City One, a vast city-state within a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

In 1995, director Danny Cannon (I Still Know What You Did Last Summer) brought Judge Dredd to the big screen starring Sylvester Stallone, Diane Lane, Max von Sydow, and Rob Schneider – and yes, you read that correctly – that’s Deuce Bigalow Male Gigalo, not Roy Scheider of Jaws.

Judge Dredd is pure ’90s cheese: a violent, effects-heavy movie that feels like the best parts of RoboCop and the worst parts of Demolition Man – the comic book equivalent to 1993’s Super Mario Bros. Looking back on it, if Stallone would have kept his helmet on – and if Rob Schneider wasn’t involved – it might have been a passable action movie.

Luckily, Hollywood believes in second chances – especially if there’s money to be made. In a cinematic landscape post-Batman Begins, it seems everything is being rebooted or re-imagined with a dark, gritty, brooding twist.