Creed Film Review: The Film Is An Impressive Knockout

CREED, Ryan Coogler’s continuation of the Rocky saga packs a real emotional punch…

Director: Ryan Coogler
Cast: Michael B. Jordan,  Sylvester Stallone,  Tessa Thompson, Graham McTavish,  Phylicia Rashad,  Tony Bellew, Maria Breyman,  Ritchie Coster,  Wood Harris,  Stephanie Damiano,  Gabe Rosado,  Malik Bazille,  Rupal Pujara
Rating: 12A
Running Time: 133 mins
Release Date: January 15th, 2016

CREED is the latest instalment in the ROCKY series and a weight of expectation and anticipation, more mightier than a heavyweight boxer, has been placed upon the film during the build-up to its release – and although it starts rather slowly, it sure packs a punch after the first twenty-minutes. I for one, who really enjoys watching boxing, had high expectations for the movie – and it surpassed all of them.

In fact, the film is rather reminiscent of Rocky III, where we see Sylvester Stallone’s Italian Stallion put through his paces en route to defeating Mr T’s Clubber Lang. Like the film CREED, Rocky was slow to get started in his bout and in the early rounds he took a while to reach full gear, but then hits the throttle and springs into action at the end delivering unstoppable blows, just like this seventh film in the Rocky series.

The opening act establishes the plot as we meet the new characters and the storyline is set up. There is very little action to be had here, but the introduction is necessary and the opportunity to ‘get to know’ the new faces is granted. We do get to see a familiar face toward the end of the first act when the Philadelphia bruiser, Rocky Balboa finally makes an appearance. He is not the lead in this one, taking centre stage in the ring this time around is Adonis Johnson, played with great superiority and rigour by Michael B Jordan. The actor has joined forces once again with director Ryan Coogler, whom he worked with in the emotional and outstanding FRUITVALE STATION. Johnson was an orphan, who spent a lot of his youth in and out of juvie and group homes, but he was rescued at the age of 10 by Mary Anne Creed (Phylicia Rashad), the widow of Rocky’s friend, foe and fellow boxer, Apollo Creed. But there is more to Johnson’s history than meets the eye, the young boy also happens to be the result of Creed’s marital infidelity, and like his father, has a gift for fighting and is destined for greatness.

During his upbringing with Mary Ann, his life becomes very different, as Adonis, who is also known as Donnie, experiences wealth for the first time and finds himself establishing a career in the financial sector in Los Angeles by day, but he spends his evening at a boxing circuit in Tijuana by night. Knowing this would destroy his adopted mother, he knows it is his calling in life and feels at home in the ring, so he embarks on a search for a trainer to really develop his craft. That of course takes him to Philadelphia, looking for Rocky.

But Rocky is not too keen to put the young hopeful through his paces, as he’s put boxing behind him since his wife, Adrian and his best pal Paulie have both died. However, Donnie possesses that determination that every athlete has and he put it to good use to get Rocky on his side and be under his guidance.

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This is where we see CREED stick to the ROCKY formula that has bode so well in the past; the audience roots for their lead and the action gets the heart pumping, which is perfectly entwined with the hip-hop music during the first training montage. It’s superbly edited by Coogler and it is at this point that you know you are sucker-punched into the movie and you cannot resist it.

The remainder of the film’s script is centred around just two set-piece fights, and boy are they worth the wait as they light up the screen with such clout, ambition and vigour. We see Donnie’s training put to the test as he takes on a rather strutting man called Stuntman (super-middleweight champ Andre Ward) and it is during this fight that we can truly admire Coogler’s work. The opening round is all done in one long, impressive take, circling around the also-circling fighters – a cinematic technique which was put to the forefront in BIRDMAN. Aside from giving the feel of a true ringside seat, it also makes it easy to forget that Jordan is an actor and not a professional boxer as we see a staged scene that is as close to real boxing you can possibly get. Jordan’s endurance is admirable and with every whistling blow and powerful lunge, you feel the effects blow by blow.  

The film charges on of course into its climax, a much-hyped showdown that we have all been waiting for with “Pretty” Ricky Conlan. The title holder is a nasty, hot-headed Englishman (Tony Bellew) who is as quick to lose his temper as he to throw a right hook. Coogler serves up the scenes with expertise, boasting muscle, ever-so-swfit jabs and awe-inspiring commitment from the actors. The match is as punishing for the audience to watch as it is for the fighters in the ring and you would be forgiven for questioning yourself as to why you have put your nerves through it, but trust us when we say it’s worth it.

Epic fight scenes aside, the performances delivered by the actors is nothing short of sublime. It’s the first film in the series which Stallone has not written nor directed – but what we do get is one of his finest performances on screen. It is a whole other level to the EXPENDABLES franchise he has starred in and the way he portrays the role of Rocky, a widower fighting cancer, shows his true capabilities. 

Tessa Thompson, who plays Jordan’s neighbourhood love interest, Bianca is also a joy to watch on the screen. She makes her character likeable, relatable and you respect her. She is a kind individual with a passion for music, which makes it all the more sad to learn that she is suffering with a progressive hearing loss.

Then we have Jordan, who is so easily able to steal the spotlight from his well-known counterpart, Stallone. He has clearly worked hard to physically look the part, but that is not the true test, could he really convince the world he is a boxer? You bet he can. He has bags of grit, clout and expertise – his movement feels very authentic. There is no denying the fact that he took some big hits in order to bring that authenticity to the film’s viewers and for that he should be applauded.   

CREED boasts incredible cinematography, uniquely blended with an emotional script all brought to the forefront in the two epic fights in the movie. They’re superb, intense and mix brutal hits with elegantly choreographed long takes. Coogler has brought out the best in Jordan – and boy can that man act – and fight. 

Verdict

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