Wagner has never been shy about his disappointment over the big-budget 1995 film version starring Sylvester Stallone and thinks that this latest take on the character has real potential.
"My views haven’t changed, though apart from my initial viewing I haven’t seen the film since it came out. They told the wrong story — it didn’t have that much to do with Dredd the character as we know him. I don’t think Stallone was a bad Dredd, though it would have been better and lent him more cred if he hadn’t revealed his face. He was just Dredd in the wrong story. I envy their budget, though. Some of the CGI was very good, and the re-creations of the Angel Gang and the robot. The robot actually came from a Pat Mills story and didn’t belong in Dredd, but it looked good. If the plot had revolved around characters like them the film would have been more successful."
On the new film:
"The plot is about Dredd and his world," he says. "It's impossible to cover every aspect of the character and his city -- perhaps that was one of the failings of the first film; they tried to do too much and ended up with not a lot. Dredd homes in on the essential job of judging -- instant justice in a violent future city. I like the actors, they're well cast and they handled their parts well. Olivia Thirlby is perfect as Anderson, the young psi judge. She gives the character a touching vulnerability. Karl Urban will not remove his helmet and will not kiss his costar."
I like hearing the creator of the character give his approval of this new film. However, I won’t be totally convinced until we see some actual footage that proves that the pic has captured the dark and gritty tone of the comics–Urban looks convincing as Dredd–we shall see...
Lena Headey also stars as the scarred Madeline Madrigal (a.k.a. Ma-Ma) who is the leader of a gang and the film's primary villain.
Pete Travis directed the action from a script by Alex Garland.
Dredd is scheduled for release on September 21, 2012.
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