"Creed" Review

Note: I've got a lot of movies that I've seen that I haven't gotten around to reviewing yet (there are at least four, I think), as well as the ones I saw this year before I started writing these. I'm hoping to knock all those out within the month of December, but this movie is on my mind and the most recent release that I've seen, so I'm gonna talk about it.

Creed is the seventh installment in the Rocky franchise (or is it a reboot, or a spinoff? I'm not sure), and follows Adonis "Donny" Creed (played by Michael B. Jordan), the son of the late Apollo Creed, living a life of luxury in his father's shadow in Los Angeles until he decides to make a name for himself in the world of boxing, much to the chagrin of his mother, and moves to Philadelphia to train. There, he meets the legendary Rocky Balboa (played, of course, by Sylvester Stallone) and the two begin training as Donny rises through the ranks to live up to - or perhaps live down - his namesake.

Now, first off, I'd like to say that calling this film a sequel or a reboot is a little disingenuous. "Spinoff" is probably the most accurate existing term for what this movie sets out to do and ultimately accomplishes. Since we know that this is surely the beginning of a new set of movies, I like to think of the six Rocky films as the Rocky franchise, while this is the beginning of the Creed franchise. And I think that's what the filmmakers, especially Stallone also serving as producer, were going for here, for reasons I'll explain toward the end of the review.

Let's get the negatives out of the way first, since there are relatively few. This is a very by-the-numbers boxing movie. All the notes you'd expect a movie like this to hit are hit on the nose, and all the themes you'd expect it to be explored are explored. The genius, however, is in the execution. Director Ryan Coogler revamps these cliches to be more engaging and exciting than they've been in any sports film in a long time, with his choice of music (a mashup of Meek Mill's "Lord Knows" with the classic Rocky theme and some great backup vocals from Jhene Aiko stands out specifically) and some incredibly sleek editing and camerawork making the somewhat formulaic screenplay an old-fashioned joy to watch unfold on the screen.

The best way to show off the strengths of this movie compared to its weaknesses is to compare the first act to the remainder of the film. The majority of the first act is fairly basic setup of Donny's situation, establishing his tense relationship with his mother and his admittedly muddled (but later redeemed) motivation regarding his father, showing off some of his boxing chops, and starting up his relationship with Tessa Thompson's character Bianca (who admittedly is the most under-written character in the whole movie, most probably to set up for sequels, though Thompson plays her well). However, once Donny and Rocky really start training, that is where Coogler as both a writer and a director gets to show off his true filmmaking prowess, and ultimately where we get the crux of the movie.

So, let's talk about Sylvester Stallone. He's been getting ample Oscar talk for his performance in this movie, and it's very much deserved. Stallone was my favorite part of the movie, and was an absolute surprise. Rocky is still the lovable lug he was in the original film, but now with some experience and wisdom. But Stallone walks a tricky tightrope of not playing the stereotypical "wise old man" mentor character - Rocky's values and beliefs, both in and out of the ring, stay true to the character, and Stallone plays old Rocky with a sensitivity that adds a new dimension to a beloved figure. Rocky's relationship with Donny feels real, and we buy their chemistry. It wouldn't be a boxing movie without some sort of piece of boxing advice that also works as a metaphor for a non-boxing struggle another character is going through, and this movie definitely latches on to that cliche, but Coogler's direction and Jordan and Stallone's sensitive, smart performances do this in a way that doesn't feel forced or trite or superficial, but actually meaningful, even drawing an audible tear or two from the audience I saw it with.

Fuck emotions, let's talk about the boxing. On top of being solidly crafted on the storytelling and character-building fronts, this film has the best boxing scenes of a modern-day film. Maryse Alberti's sleek cinematography places the viewer in the ring with the fighters, and the intensity is palpable, with Donny's first pro fight being entirely one shot (which I learned recently was not a case of editing trickery, but was actually a painstakingly choreographed one-take fight sequence that lasts for several minutes) being one of the most notable. The final fight of the film, however, takes the cake as one of my favorite movie finales of the year. It's tense, exciting, the punches feel weighty, and the characters' motivations and emotions shine through all of it splendidly. This is the first film in some time that the audience I was with actually cheered during the movie, as if they were actually rooting for Donny in a real boxing match. If for nothing else, Creed gets bonus points for creating one of the most fun theater atmospheres I've been in in a while.

Just as an extra thing to think about, what I find really interesting about this movie and the previous six Rocky films is how much they reflect Stallone's career. Each of the films, most of them directed by Stallone, is emblematic of Stallone himself in his place in the world. In Creed, Rocky hands the reigns of the boxing world to a young newcomer, just as Stallone is doing handing the franchise off to Coogler/Jordan. And ultimately, Creed is about the main character trying to separate himself from the name that made him relevant and stand out as his own thing, just as the movie Creed itself does as a film. Interesting to think about.

Overall, Creed is a relatively predictable but well-crafted, exciting, and triumphant resurgence for the Rocky franchise that has some great music, some of the best fight scenes in modern movies, and kick-ass performances from its leads, most notably from Rocky himself. Go see it; it's a great time.

Grade: A-