On May 1, the 1995 movie Judge Dredd starring Sylvester Stallone was added to the streaming service Peacock. It's a good time to revisit this adaptation, especially as it celebrates its 30th anniversary next month. It's not the most popular adaptation of a comic book character. In fact, it's not even the most popular adaptation of 2000 Ad's iconic future cop.

But it's not completely without merit, either. While the 2012 adaptation Dredd is definitely the more popular choice, it does make the first attempt easier to accept on its own terms. In fact, while many elements didn't work (two of which in particular stand out), three things also worked surprisingly well.

What works in Judge DreddThe opening block war

The opening ten minutes of Judge Dredd are extremely effective at introducing the audience to Mega-City 1. We get a sense of just how chaotic and violent Dredd's city is and, more importantly, we learn about the Judges.