With the release of Dredd 3D at midnight tonight, Lionsgate and DNA Films will attempt to redeem the character of Judge Dredd in the eyes of the American public, who by and large were not familiar with him until the poorly-received Sylvester Stallone film in 1995. In the years since, that film (and by extension the character) has become a pop culture punchline (if you need evidence of this, just watch Scrubs).But Dredd 3D is not Judge Dredd. Dredd 3D is a terrific film, with strong performances all around and a great, simple story that plays up what’s the most easily accessible aspects of Dredd’s mythology while leaving the rest of it for presumptive future installments.What makes us say that? We thought you’d never ask…Karl UrbanKarl Urban is a fan of Judge Dredd, and it’s clear he gets it. He also understands that one doesn’t need to SHOUT ALL THE TIME in order to be badass. In fairness, Dredd is often drawn with his mouth wide open and spittle trailing all over the cover of comic books, but the calm, quiet demeanor of Urban’s Dredd is much more in keeping with someone who’s in control and sure of himself than was the outwardly emotional, just-this-side-of-crazy version Stallone brought to the table.Oh, and has been noted a number of times, you got a big-name actor with both chops and geek cred, who understood the part enough that he took a job where most of his face would be covered for the entire film.
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