Dredd

Today, our "best of 2012" turns to Jeff Allard.  Jeff has been writing for us for quite a while and I respect his work, moreover, his opinion.  If you've been following our year-end lists this week, you might have noticed a pattern in our selections.  Well, Jeff is here to break things up.  We'll begin with his "honorable mentions."  Head inside for his "top 5."  - Ryan Turek, Managing Editor

Honorable Mentions:  Shark fans should give Bait a look as it’s one of the best examples of the shark sub-genre; The Collection was the gnarliest slasher pic of the year; Tim Burton made one of his best recent films with Frankenweenie, a true love letter to Monster Kids; and although it probably would’ve worked better as an installment of an anthology show as the story felt padded out to feature length, Sinister nonetheless achieved some of the year’s best scares.

Dredd is holding its premiere at Fantastic Fest tonight before opening wide tomorrow (Friday, September 21st) and Shock Till You Drop spoke with Judge Dredd himself, Karl Urban, about the film, its "indie" sensibilities, finding the character, Dredd's journey and whether Urban thought the world of the film could make room for Judge Death.  

In other words, it was a solid, albeit brief, discussion from one fan of the comic and movie to the other.

Urban has long been on the genre radar for over a decade now, taking on his first horror film in 2000 with The Truth About Demons.  Since then, he's blown up, leaping from The Lord of the Rings trilogy to The Chronicles of Riddick and Star Trek.  And speaking of Riddick, we got him to quickly touch on his return to the upcoming, aptly titled, Riddick, starring Vin Diesel and once again directed by David Twohy.

Head inside for more!

Check out this all new clip from the upcoming Dredd 3D featuring Karl Urban as Judge Dredd and Olivia Thirlby as Cassandra Anderson.

The film opens in theaters in 2D and 3D on September 21st. In Dredd 3D, the future America is an irradiated waste land. 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 (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. 

Lionsgate released a new 60-second TV spot for Dredd 3D, opening September 21st.  You can find the preview inside.

Can this movie come any sooner?  I almost wish it was a late-August release rather than a late-September debut.  The movie's done.  Hell, it screened to a Comic-Con audience this summer and received good reviews.

Even though there is a distinct element of The Raid in its plot (and I'm likening the whole "Slow-Mo" drug craze subplot in the film to "Nuke" from RoboCop 2), I'm just digging the vibe of it all.  It might not be an accurate portrayal of the Judge Dredd comic it's based on, but it's looking close enough.

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

Following yesterday's new clip from Dredd 3D, Lionsgate has now brought online this "Legendary" TV spot for the September 21 release. Directed by Pete Travis, the R-rated film stars Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby and Lena Headey.

In Dredd 3D, the future America is an irradiated waste land. 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. 

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

Is it weird to say I'm strangely attracted to Lena Headey's role in Dredd?  Weird, I know.  Let's move on. A new clip from the September 21st release - a comic book adaptation already getting some good buzz - has been revealed courtesy of Den of Geek, you'll find it after the jump.

In this snippet, Mama - played by Headey - is locking things down in her block and Dredd and his partner (Olivia Thirlby), unfortunately, are about to be trapped in a building full of killers.  A bit like The Raid?  You betcha.  But let's see how the filmmakers put a spit on this scenario before we "judge" the film, shall we?

Get what I did there?  Judge?  Judge Dredd...?  Oh, nevermind.  Watch the damn clip.

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

Lionsgate has revealed, through Yahoo! Movies, the final poster for the upcoming Dredd 3D, the Pete Travis-directed action thriller that opens in 3D and 2D theaters on September 21st.

Alex Garland wrote the R-rated film, which stars Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby and Lena Headey.

You can check it out a larger version of the poster inside.  

I do have to say, the one-sheet bares a striking resemblence to a 2003 comic book adaptation.  I've made the comparison after the jump, see if you agree.  That's not to take the piss out of the Dredd poster, which is certainly bad-ass.  I'm just sayin'...

Our favorite time of year is approaching: Fantastic Fest is about to descend on Austin, Texas once again, rolling out September 20th - 27th at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar.  Last year, Shock attended this incredible film festival and we plan to do it again.

This morning, the organizers have revealed the first wave of film titles on the programming slate.

It was previously revealed that Frankenweenie would be making its premiere - sure, a nice slice of kiddie fare, no doubt.  On the other end of the spectrum, however, FF will be holding the premiere for Dredd 3D which is set to open September 21st nation-wide.

The festival is also pleased to announce the House of Psychotic Women sidebar, hosted by author and former Drafthouse programmer Kier-la Janisse.  Kier-la will be introducing each show and signing copies of her book afterwards. House of Psychotic Women is an autobiographical exploration of female neurosis in horror and exploitation films. Anecdotes and memories interweave with film history, criticism, trivia and confrontational imagery to create a reflective personal history and examination of female madness, both onscreen and off. 

Head inside for initial lineup of films at this year's festival...

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

With the release of a Dredd 3D, a tie-in digital comic prequel is coming this August.

Lionsgate has premiered the first look at the digital comic's hand drawn cover by Greg Staples.  The prequel, written by 2000AD editor Matt Smith, will feature the comics first appearance of Ma-Ma, "Game of Thrones" star Lena Headey.

Based on the acclaimed comic series by John Wagner & Carlos Ezquerra, the new film starring Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby & Lena Headey opens nationwide on Friday, September 21st.

Read our early thoughts on the film right here.

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

You've read our advance review for Dredd.  Now, check out a red band clip that shows Dredd himself (Karl Urban) in action!

You can also share the clip at JudgementIsComing.com for a chance to win a trip to see the film in London!

In the September 21st release, starring Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby and Lena Headey, the future America is an irradiated waste land. 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 (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 (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 (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.

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

Comic-Con is already officially on and one of the boldest moves right out of the gate was Lionsgate's decision to use opening night to show one of their upcoming movies that doesn't come out for months.

But who can really blame them? Dredd 3D is one of those rare movies that comes to Comic-Con that's actually based on a real comic book. Word got out of the sneak preview screening pretty quickly with thousands of fans lined-up outside the Reading Gaslamp theater on Wednesday night for a late screening.

I've been a fan of Judge Dredd since I was a teenager, because it always had such a great concept, that in the future, the judicial system has cut out all the middle men--no police officers, no lawyers, no witnesses--just a judge on a chopper carrying a weapon that can mete out justice based on his own discretion. For everyone who hated the 1995 Sly Stallone Judge Dredd movie, imagine the thoughts of the fans who loved the 2000 AD comics, which was written and drawn by some of the finest British talent.

The Fringe is a place where non-horror genre films can get some play on Shock.  These films might be sci-fi, fantasy or action - and certainly contain some horror elements - but will likely be light on scares, or, straight-up "horror."  Still, they might be of interest to you.

This fall, Lionsgate is going to take a stab at Dredd (based on the popular comic book, Judge Dredd, made once already into a film with Sylvester Stallone) with a 3D film opening September 21st.

The trailer for the Peter Travis-directed adaptation has arrived and it looks a bit like...The Raid?  Well, the concept for The Raid is certainly there as we see Dredd (Karl Urban) infiltrating a building loaded with criminals who are all out to stop him.  Lena Headey is the crazy bitch running the ass-kicking show and Olivia Thirlby plays Dredd's partner of sorts.

The preview has style to spare and it looks like Urban doesn't take that big clunky helmet off at all - which  is the right way to depict Dredd (unlike the Stallone film).  Check out the trailer within...