Dredd (1/8/2013)

Rated R for strong bloody violence, language, drug use and some sexual content.

Starring Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby and Lena Headey

Directed by Pete Travis (Vantage Point)

This Dredd film is way more intense…and no one says, “I am the law.”

The future America is an irradiated wasteland. On its east coast, running from Boston to Washington DC, lies Mega City One – a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets. The only force of order lies with the urban cops called “Judges” who possess the combined powers of judge, jury and instant executioner. Known and feared throughout the city, Dredd (Karl Urban) is the ultimate Judge, challenged with ridding the city of its latest scourge – a dangerous drug epidemic that has users of “Slo-Mo” experiencing reality at a fraction of its normal speed.

During a routine day on the job, Dredd is assigned to train and evaluate Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), a rookie with powerful psychic abilities thanks to a genetic mutation. A heinous crime calls them to a neighborhood where fellow Judges rarely dare to venture – a 200 story vertical slum controlled by prostitute turned drug lord Ma-Ma (Lena Headey) and her ruthless clan. When they capture one of the clan’s inner-circle, Ma-Ma overtakes the compound’s control center and wages a dirty, vicious war against the Judges that proves she will stop at nothing to protect her empire. With the body count climbing and no way out, Dredd and Anderson must confront the odds and engage in the relentless battle for their survival.

I watched the 1995 Sylvester Stallone version of Judge Dredd, as a result I had no desire to see this one. I’m starting to think Sylvester Stallone just might be the cheesiest actor in Hollywood. Is it blasphemy to wonder if Rocky could have been better with someone else? I guess we’ll save that conversation for another day.

This film did a couple of things well. First, Karl Urban never takes his helmet off. I’m not sure why, but I actually really liked that. Secondly, there’s absolutely no cheese. If you’ve seen the 1995 version I dare you to say, “I am the law” without using your best Sylvester Stallone voice. It can’t be done. It’s as if Director Pete Travis decided to take out all cheese and replace it with straight up intensity. Then there is the way many scenes are shot. The “slo-mo” effect is very cool. Finally the storyline is actually quite interesting. Imagine a 200 level slum where a violent criminal mastermind controlled everything and there was a complete absence of law and order. That’s both scary and disturbing.

Unfortunately they also did quite a few things poorly. Pete Travis decided to make an intensely violent and extremely disturbing movie. Please see below for a detailed description.

The violence is way too intense and gory, the language is gratuitous and over-the-top, and the subject matter is just too disturbing. I have to go with the “Skip It.”

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
There is one sex scene that is played several different times. One character is a psychic woman and a man envisions sexual fantasies with her to upset her.

In the next, you see the woman take her suit off, you see her cleavage and then it cuts to her naked back. The man pushes her head down to his groin, and he makes pleasurable noises; it is implied that she is giving him oral sex. You then see his face, seemingly pained, as another woman’s head comes up, bloody, implying she bit his penis off. ?

As far as the violence…buckle up. Characters are smashed by cars, burned alive, and thrown from great heights, splattering on the ground. Other characters are beaten, pummeled, and bloodied; a neck is broken violently. In a few extremely quick flashback shots, characters are skinned alive. And I can’t even tell you how many other people are shot.

The profanity is just as bad. More than 50 uses of the F-word, a dozen or so S-words, and a few others.?

The film is incredibly violent and will be disturbing for most viewers.

CONVERSATION STARTER

1. How do you feel about rules?


2. How many rules do you have to follow?


3. What is the least favorite rule that you have to follow?


4. What do you think your life would be like without rules?


5. What was life like in Peachtree without rules?


6. How did the citizens of Peachtree respond to the Judges?


7. Read Romans 13:1-7
   
   Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.
   
   
8. According to this passage how should we respond to authority?


9. According to this passage why should we submit to authority?


10. What can we do this week to better submit to authority?