why did dredd fail at the box office

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  • 7/27/2019 Why Did Dredd Fail at the Box Office

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    Molly Simpson Media Studies 12A3

    Why Did Dredd Fail At The Box Office?

    Dredd is a graphic novel (created in 1977 by the UK). The US created a film adaptation of the

    character in 1995, and ironically, it was not very popular and didnt do very well. This is because the

    UK created the character, therefore this character and novel was unknown in the states. This meant

    that whoever created the adaptation lost out on a lot of money because the film was brought out in

    the wrong country at the wrong time.

    In this recent day of age, superhero films are very popular everywhere. Examples of recent

    superhero films are Spiderman, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Batman, Superman, The Avengers and The

    Incredibles. The majority of superhero films use an advanced computer graphics programme called

    CGI (Computer-generated Imagery). This is a modern IT programme and is now used effectively to

    make great films look better.

    Dredd was created to compete with the US version of superhero films. Unfortunately, due to its bad

    reputation, it failed. This happened because of a variety of things including a lack of a-list

    actors/actress, a wide range of a target audience, the characters popularity and its poor creativity.

    Unlike Dredd, the majority of other superhero films were successful. This is because they required

    and considered all of the things Dredd did not have.

    An example of a successful superhero film is Spiderman. Comparing the two together will show how

    unsuccessful Dredd really was.

    The character Judge Dredd came from an English magazine company called IPC Media, which is not

    a very well-known company so making it difficult for the character to become popular and known.

    Because this character was created in England, this already creates a problem as the UK isnt as big

    as the US; therefore they have a smaller population than the US and have huge competition.

    Spiderman came from a magazine company called Marvel Comics, a well-known and popular

    magazine in America. Spiderman was more likely to do better than Dredd because America has a

    bigger population than England itself.

    In the recent 2012 Dredd film, the main character, Judge Dredd, is played by Karl Urban, an

    upcoming New Zealand actor. This unfortunately doesnt really benefit the film because hes not a

    popular character, therefore most people wouldnt be that bothered about going to see him.

    Spiderman was played by Andrew Garfield, an American/English actor.

    Although Garfield has not been involved in many films, he sustained the role of Spiderman

    throughout all of the films and he has been in some very successful films such as Spiderman and The

    Social Network. By having a well-known character star in a film allows the target audience to be

    more interested in going to see it, and Dredd missed out on this.

    Dredd had a budget of $45 million, and Spiderman had a budget of $230 million. The budget spent

    on a film really does decide on what happens next for the film (will it be popular or unpopular).

    Dredd had a low budget because they were not willing to spend money. This is negative because it

    already tells us that it wasnt going to do very well. Spidermans budget is huge, which could go

    either way in popularity. Because the character was popular to all ages, this meant it was going to do

    well, unlike Dredd. Unfortunately for Dredd, they did not make all of the money back through the

    box office either.

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    Molly Simpson Media Studies 12A3

    Spidermans director was Marc Webb, an American film director. Although hes not directed many

    films, he has directed successful ones such as Spiderman and 500 Days of summer. Dredds director

    was Pete Travis, an English film director. This director does not really have much experience with

    film directing, which is perhaps why the film didnt do very well.

    Dredd was rated an 18 (only ages over 18 could see this) and Spiderman was a 13.

    Dredds rating was negative because it reduces the amount people who can go and see it. Alsobecause its a superhero film, it should be suitable for most ages. Spidermans rating was average.

    This is because although it applied to a younger audience than Dredd, it still meant younger ages

    could not see it (unless they were accompanied by an adult).

    Dredd used a couple of techniques to create the film they wanted. They used Red X Camera and

    3D technology. A Red X Camera is professional motion and still picture camera, used to create a

    mood or a special effect in a film. An example of where Red X Camera was used is slow motion

    scenes. The creators of Dredd used this to create an effect of hallucination and disorientation in

    significant scenes such as when villains are taking drugs they shouldnt be. Dredd also created a 3D

    version of their film. They spent the majority of their money making the 3D version look incredible

    and exciting. However, due to this, they failed to get a positive response. A critic from the New YorkDaily News said Dredd is a lot of murk and grunt with no inner engine. And the unnecessary 3-D only

    makes it look muddier. Unfortunately, the 3D version shouldnt have been created as it made them

    loose out on a lot of money which is perhaps why the film wasnt as successful as it couldve been.

    Spiderman used 3D too; however the film was a lot more successful as it appealed to a wider age

    group and Spiderman is a well-known superhero around the world.

    Dredd was mainly filmed in South Africa. This is because it is cheap to film there therefore they took

    the opportunity. They also chose to film there because they were not willing to spend much money,

    and most of it went into the 3D making. Spiderman filmed mainly in America. This is because they

    could afford to so they took the opportunity. Also, filming here could potentially make the film look

    better in a realistic atmosphere, and it did.

    Dredd was not advertised effectively. This could have been why the film didnt do as well as other

    superhero films. It was only advertised on a few buses and a couple of trailers. Aside from that,

    there were no other eye-catching advertisements. For a low budget movie the films popularity was

    already reduced from the beginning because nobody knew about it. The advertising would have

    been also affected by the 18 certificate. They were unable to post explicit and violent images of the

    film on posters as it can be offensive to society (and the film is based upon violence, drugs and

    explicitly). The sci-fi magazine SFX spoke about the films marketing and quote To anyone outside

    that audience? The studio put Dredd on the side of a couple of buses, and put together trailers I

    liked but which I accept were a bit generic. Aside from that? Nothing.

    Spiderman, on the other hand, hit marketing through the roof. Due to it being such a successful

    comic anyway, you would expect it to do well. The marketing was viewed on posters, trailers, buses,adverts etc. And was an absolute hit.

    Overall, Dredd was not a success. The film lacked creativity and tried too hard to be like a

    blockbuster. Although small budget films could potentially be a great success (such as The Raid)

    companies should avoid trying to copy blockbusters as they look stolen, unimaginative and

    embarrassing. The film had some potential things in it, such as the effective slow motion scenes.

    However, they were irrelevant to the main character or the plot. The producers and directors failed

    to stay focused on the main character and went completely off subject. Dredd failed to appeal to a

    wider age range audience and this could be one of the main reasons why it failed. All superhero films

    appeal to a younger age range as families can go and watch it and Dredd didnt. The film failed

    because they failed to attract an audience with their unsuccessful violence and marketing, and choseto create a film on a mainly unknown comical character where nobody in this generation knows.

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    Molly Simpson Media Studies 12A3