Let me first say I was not only a die-hard enthusiast for ‘Creed’ (2015), but grew up on the entire Rocky franchise. There wasn’t a span of two weeks as an adolescent that I wasn’t popping in one of the Rocky films. It became embedded in my DNA. So, with the build up to ‘Creed 2‘, the piss and vinegar was running through my veins yet again in the hopes, this, like the former, would strike a nerve emotionally, and yield feel good nostalgia for the film’s inspiration, ‘Rocky IV.’ However, something about it just felt off from beginning to end. Here’s why…
The film picks up with a brief entrance and return of Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) and his son, Viktor (Florian Munteanu), that’s supposed to show the poor state of affairs Ivan is in, some 34 years after the conclusion of his fight with Rocky Balboa. From there, you jump to Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), about to fight for the WBC title. It all felt very rushed to begin with, as did his first fight against Danny “Stuntman” Wheeler. As time goes on, yes, there are some intimate and substantive moments between Adonis and the love of his life, Bianca (Tessa Thompson), and even some thoughtful scenes with his mom, Mary Anne Creed (the great Phylicia Rashad– who doesn’t look a day over the age she looked in season 6 of ‘The Cosby Show), but it wasn’t enough to overcome the film’s shortcomings.
Look, it was great seeing Sly reprising his role of Rocky Balboa, along with Dolph returning to the role that made him famous so many years ago, but against the primary nucleus of the film, with Michael B. Jordan taking center stage, it all felt flat. Add to it, the actual fight’s between Adonis and Viktor, not only felt rushed, but where was the grandiose and rousing score to get everyone’s blood pumping? The soundtrack to the last film absolutely did a phenomenal job of stoking the furnace during the fights, but this one felt recycled at best. I hate to break it to movie lovers, but the soundtrack is just as important as the central characters– Could you imagine the original Rocky film’s not being accompanied by Bill Conti’s legendary music?? It simply would not be the same. Fast forward to Creed 2, and the score was/is a major letdown in my eyes. And if that wasn’t enough, something about the arena’s the fights took place in looked incredibly artificial and plastic to me– I have to surmise that some green screen work was done to expand the look and size of the mise en scene, and in the end it made everything look and feel like something out of a video game. Even when the older films used faux shots of crowds, it was of actual REAL crowds of people, so as fake as that looked, it certainly looked far more convincing than what I witnessed last night.
And now for how the Drago characters were handled– I’m not saying they ruined the legend of Ivan Drago, because to a certain degree, humanizing him was really the only way to evolve the character, but I felt it was taken too far in the end, and his son, Viktor, probably needed more to chew on. There was one scene where you really felt some of the anguish Viktor was going through being pressed into fighting but it seemed more like a blink and you’ll miss it kind of moment. Moreover, there was a major character decision in the beginning, where Balboa refuses to train Adonis, and if you rack and stack that up against what those characters went through together in the first movie, there’s just no sincere reason within the realm of thought as to why he (Rocky) would leave Adonis hanging. No way, no how.
I would also be remiss to not mention the character of Little Duke, Jr (Wood Harris)– in the first movie, he had some great scenes early on, getting under the skin of Adonis and trying to teach him that he can’t just waltz into the ring, just because his daddy was a great champion. And yet in this one, boy, he was underused and really just a useless trainer with the way they depicted him. All of these critiques I’m throwing in here might sound like I’m being a little too rough on this film, but if you take into consideration the body of work leading up to this hyped sequel, how the heck can one not walk out of this just a teensie-weensie bit disappointed??
The good? Well, ya gotta love Tessa Thompson rocking an outfit that harkens back to the one Adrian (Talia Shire) wore to the fight in the first film– classy, classic and there’s truly no comparison. Some of the cinematography set out in the desert training montage scenes was hand over fist spectacular looking. And, I would just say seeing Rocky walk around with his super ball and classic, endearing charm as usual, was enough to put a smile on anyone’s face.
Now, time is the true judge and jury of how a film is really received. It took, maybe 18 years, for me to appreciate some of the layers to the always slammed, ‘Rocky V’, and ironically, this film, probably made me appreciate that former flick much, much more. All that being said, a film like this manages to get people out on a cold, winter’s night, and for me, the time spent with some dear friends (seen below, and yes, rocking a Creed T-shirt behind my beer) makes the entire experience of seeing this film, more than worth the price of admission. Regardless of my personal discontent with Creed 2, my hat’s off to Sylvester Stallone, Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, Dolph Lundgren and the entire cast of this one, and those that came before it, for creating such an endearing series of films– It’s still one of the most positive forces in this world we live in that brings people together amidst all the chaos. Thanks for reading. Cheers!!
2 out of 5 stars
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