“Creed” Brings Rocky Back To The Ring

Re-invigorate the aging boxing franchise with new blood, but without losing any of the sentimental connections to the earlier movies. But instead of being the fighter, Rocky is the one mentoring his protege, Adonis Creed, who is played by Michael B. Jordan.

Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) trains Adonis Johnson (Michael B. Jordan) in Ryan Coogler’s “Creed”. But we should know better by now than to count him out. “This one’s from the 10th round of the second fight”. “He’s in a different fight this time around, much more dramatic and emotional”.

Creed is the son of Rocky’s heavyweight rival and beach-running friend, Apollo Creed, and the titular character who coaxed Balboa out of retirement and into a trainer’s role in the movie, now in theaters. Adonis must declare that he’s “been fighting my whole life”, there’s the obligatory street fight defending a girlfriend (Tessa Thompson) and of course Rocky wants no part of training a young fighter. She raised him in a mansion but Adonis, nicknamed “Donnie”, never felt comfortable in luxury and he refuses to take a great office job in finance, disappointing his adopted mother.

Determined to become the best, Donnie hunts Rocky down in Philadelphia. He remains the same old Rocko we all remember. He refuses the hungry young man, like Mickey once did to Rock, but Donnie keeps coming around looking for pointers.

Stallone, now pushing 70, is back playing Rocky a seventh time, and it’s a moving, lived-in performance. Sticking to the tried and tested formula behind the Rocky series, Creed is an offshoot of one of Hollywood’s biggest and most successful franchises. But it also maintains a sharp dramatic edge.

Coogler helmed the film while Aaron Covington and Stallone wrote the film script. Robert Chartoff, William Chartoff, Nicolas Stern, Kevin King Templeton, David Winkler, and Irwin Winkler co-produced the film. She meets him as a fighter and she’s not ever at any point, “Hey, man, you need to stop doing this”. Do you think that by reprising his famous role, Stallone will contend for awards once again?

From its very beginning in 1976, the “Rocky” story has been about proving you belong in the ring – not winning, necessarily, but showing you have the cred to be there in the first place. His hair might be gray, but the 69-year-old actor shows he can still inspire people. That indulgence would have to be gleaned off blu ray discs of the first four films. He works him on the speed bag but does not, thankfully, wake him up with a cocktail of raw eggs, the way Rocky used to start his day. Bianca teases, but she’s telling the truth. Why does Rocky give him a chance?

Creed explores a new chapter in the Rocky story, a sequel that also serves as a spin-off, re-envisioning the ultimate underdog story for a new generation. But before then, I had occasion to take in the newest addition / spin-off from the saga of Rocky Balboa, entitled simply enough “Creed”.

In fact, the first big fight Donny has in the US serves up some of the best boxing footage shot for movies as it uses long takes in real time to convey just how grueling it is to spend three minutes in the ring with an opponent.