The first thing you need to know about Dredd is that Karl Urban never takes his helmet off. The second thing to know is that all the bad guys have scars. The third thing to know about Dredd (note: not in order of importance) is that it's shockingly good. Shocking not necessarily because it's so incredibly good, but because the possibility of it being even slightly good seemed so remote. I mean, imagine someone saying they'd remade Battlefield Earth. That's what Dredd sounds like to most of us only aware of the source material through Sly Stallone slurring "Aayyy yam the law!" in some half-remembered trailer from the '90s. Even putting aside the history, usually when people tell you that a movie is "Dumb but fun!" it means, "It's awful, but I'm a moron!" Dredd is the exception: It succeeds in finding that elusive mix of tongue-in-cheek camp and visceral thrill. by Vince Mancini