The Original Judge Dredd Movie

In the 1990’s, Sylvester Stallone was the action star and he was cast in a little picture named ‘Judge Dredd’ based on a series of comic books. And it’s not a great film, but it’s still a good movie.

Yet another hill I will die on.

This was the first movie based on a comic book I saw as a kid. My mom is a mega nerd, she played the original Castlevania and collected Stephen King novels and loves taking computers apart to see how they work and putting them back together. I was about 7 when she found Judge Dredd on VHS at Hollywood Video.

We had movie nights on Fridays with the family and we took turns picking out movies at Hollywood VIdeo. We picked up one movie for family night, one for me to take home and watch and one for mom. I don’t remember what the other two were, but I remember mom picking up Dredd.

She watched it on Saturday night and I was coloring on the floor. I wasn’t paying attention to begin with but within the first ten minutes I was hooked.

This was an overtop, colorful movie to me back then. I thought Diane Lane was smart and brave and beautiful, and Sly Stallone was honorable and a little naive about the justice system but overall a badass. Rob Schneider was just goofy and I liked that he brought comic relief.

I loved it all. This was the first movie I saw that was based in the future and I loved it. I loved the concept of having Judges as the new police force and the flying cars and the new technology. I loved the costumes and the dialogue and scenery.

As a kid, this was the best movie.

As an adult, I mock the ever loving sh*t out of it.

But for me, it’s one of those movies that’s a core memory for me. So when Judge Dredd first appears on the street on the Lawmaster, I’m just a kid sitting cross legged on the floor with a crayola marker doodling the badge of Judge Dredd again.

We all have those things that make us feel like kids again. Walking through the entrance of Disneyland and smelling cotton candy. The smell of christmas cookies. A song that reminds you of a road trip where you would sing at the top of your lungs.

For me, there's a lot of things that take me back. The smell of a library always makes me remember the time where I got bullied and I ran and hid in a random room in elementary school. The smell of the books, rich vanilla, and the librarians perfume, lavender and rose, those smells take me right back to being a scared little girl begging to hide and a kind librarian letting me stay if I helped her reshelve books. So I did, to this day whenever I feel overwhelmed or scared, I smell a book and I find comfort.

Judge Dredd is the first nerdy movie my mother shared with me. Its special between us, like a lot of nerdy stuff. She never forced me to try and like the things she did, she let me discover things on my own. It started with Dredd, and it still goes on to this day. We went and saw the new Mortal Kombat movie and that will be a separate article because I have some things to say about it.

Its weird but Judge Dredd is a comfort movie for me. Like smelling a book, once that music begins and seeing Mega City, its a story I know and love and I will happily watch it.

And mock it mercilessly.

Why?

BECAUSE I AM THE LAWWWWWWW