Judge Anderson - Olivia Thirlby

[TordelBack]

Lee Carter could take a lesson from Anderson's boobarmour in those stills - much more the thing.  Do wish (the very pretty) Thirlby had dyed those eyebrows, a peroxide Judge is hard to take.

[Hoagy]

Lee Carter could take a lesson from Anderson's boobarmour in those stills - much more the thing.  Do wish (the very pretty) Thirlby had dyed those eyebrows, a peroxide Judge is hard to take.

No way man! They're totally reminiscent of Brett Ewins' inky black brows.

[TordelBack]

Good point, Krom!

[Hoagy]

Glad to help you through this troubling transition Tords

[Frank]

I think that seeing as this movie is her origin, we will at first get a more hesitant Anderson, who slowly goes through some progressions as she works with Joe. I think by the end, when she becomes full judge, her changes will be evident, and hopefully there will be a sequel (with Judge Death of course) In which we see her sassier side, perhaps some of the banter she has with Dredd, like out of the strips where she frequently flirts at him, to his annoyance lol. But yeah, excited to see where Olivia takes the character

Yep. Y'know those screenwriting books, that suggest you ask yourself 'whose story is this?'; the answer, in this case, is Anderson. Do you remember Dredd '95 Producer Charles Lippincott's justification for having Dredd turn on the waterworks? All to do with the hero's journey, you see; everyone has to learn to grow and share and love to give the story a satisfying conclusion.

There's a kernel of truth in that, but by making Thirlby the repository of the audience's emotional investment in his story, Garland has cleaved that particular Gordian Knot and illustrated that Lippincott's argument owed more to hide bound Hollywood convention, and pandering to his star's monstrous ego, than any concern with formal perfection. His solution should mean Dredd himself can remain resolutely unchanged and unmoved from the opening credits to the final fade to black- just the way we like it.

[Frank]

Making the Anderson character the focus of the story will work well, not just because she isn't wearing a helmet to obscure the emotions flitting across her pretty face, but because the situation she's in- effectively, the worst job interview ever, with the toughest bastard on earth- is one which everyone in the audience will be able to identify and empathise with.

We know the the set up of the rookie's final assessment works, because we've seen it used so successfully in the comics over the years. From Dekker, to Kraken, to Giant, to Rico, to the tangential call-backs we were afforded of Dredd's own initiation by Morphy; those stories offer a brilliant narrative shorthand for communicating exactly what's at stake to the audience, and having them root for the rookie.

Moreover, the didactic nature of the situation makes it easy to communicate information about Dredd's world to the viewer naturally, through dialogue, in the exchange of questions and answers between rookie and assessing officer- rather than having anyone make cheesey declamatory monologues, or just sticking a text panel and a James Earl Jones voice over at the start and hoping for the best.

[JOE SOAP]

Apart from providing the role of the empathetic character - in more ways than one with the emotionally sensitive Anderson PSI who in turn can empathise without contact - there's also the business of providing Dredd with an antagonist(s) - Ma Ma and gang - whose actions are to a greater degree more reprehensible than his own in order to, at least, account for the actions of an unmerciful state sponsored law-enforcer.

[JOE SOAP]

Moreover, the didactic nature of the situation makes it easy to communicate information about Dredd's world to the viewer naturally, through dialogue, in the exchange of questions and answers between rookie and assessing officer- rather than having anyone make cheesey declamatory monologues, or just sticking a text panel and a James Earl Jones voice over at the start and hoping for the best.

The Darth Vader conceit was always a tack-on and also loses out on providing the film with Dredd's  authoritarian tone which is so dominant in the comic's prose. Hearing Dredd tell us -or a rookie- the lay of the land is far more powerful than some disembodied spirit.

[judgefloyd]

Apart from providing the role of the empathetic character - in more ways than one with the emotionally sensitive Anderson PSI who in turn can empathise without contact - there's also the business of providing Dredd with an antagonist(s) - Ma Ma and gang - whose actions are to a greater degree more reprehensible than his own in order to, at least, account for the actions of an unmerciful state sponsored law-enforcer.

Shivers, I hope they don't overdo the empathetic bit in the movie.  Watching that audition, I got flashbacks to the 80s Star Trek show, in which an 'empath' would justify herself by saying obvious things about emotions (eg Captain:  'They've fired fifty billion photon torpedoes at us', Empath (looking profound) 'I sense great anger'). 

[Goaty]

Someone post these at IMDB, Olivia does looks nice...

[blackmocco]

Apart from providing the role of the empathetic character - in more ways than one with the emotionally sensitive Anderson PSI who in turn can empathise without contact - there's also the business of providing Dredd with an antagonist(s) - Ma Ma and gang - whose actions are to a greater degree more reprehensible than his own in order to, at least, account for the actions of an unmerciful state sponsored law-enforcer.

Shivers, I hope they don't overdo the empathetic bit in the movie.  Watching that audition, I got flashbacks to the 80s Star Trek show, in which an 'empath' would justify herself by saying obvious things about emotions (eg Captain:  'They've fired fifty billion photon torpedoes at us', Empath (looking profound) 'I sense great anger').

You've got nothing to worry about...

[judgeblake]

This is probably going to be unpopular but I'm not a big fan of Thirlby's casting as Anderson. I would have cast Amber Heard or Michelle Ryan or (probably gonna be even more unpopular lol) Kristen Stewart.

[dweezil2]

This is probably going to be unpopular but I'm not a big fan of Thirlby's casting as Anderson. I would have cast Amber Heard or Michelle Ryan or (probably gonna be even more unpopular lol) Kristen Stewart.

And that's why you're not a casting director!

[blackmocco]

This is probably going to be unpopular but I'm not a big fan of Thirlby's casting as Anderson. I would have cast Amber Heard or Michelle Ryan or (probably gonna be even more unpopular lol) Kristen Stewart.

Kirsten fucking Stewart...?! Great. While Dredd's busting heads she can mope and bite her lip, all the while looking like she just woke up.

Wait before casting judgement. Thirlby's a huge part of why the movie works so well. Her performance elevates the movie.

[Frank]

This is probably going to be unpopular but I'm not a big fan of Thirlby's casting as Anderson. I would have cast Amber Heard or Michelle Ryan or (probably gonna be even more unpopular lol) Kristen Stewart.

Amber Heard would have been the same kind of casting as Eighties suggestions like Heather Locklear and Michelle Pfeiffer, meaning the part would become much more overtly about the sexuality of the actress. Kristen Stewart would only make sense in terms of box office, but at least we'd be guaranteed sequels.

Gotta believe Wagner, blackmocco and every single review I've read, that Thirlby aces the part.