Genre:
Drama, Sport
Produced by:
Charles Winkler, Irwin Winkler, David Winkler, Sylvester Stallone, Kevin King
Templeton, William Cha
Directed by:
Steven Caple Jr.
Written by:
Cheo Hodari Coker, Sylvester Stallone
Production Company: Warner Bros. Pictures
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Wood
Harris, Russell Hornsby, Phylicia Rashad, Dolph Lundgren
Runtime: 130 minutes
SYNOPSIS:
Thirty three years after Apollo Creed’s
(Carl Weathers) death in the hands
of Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren),
Apollo’s son Adonis (Michael B. Jordan)
finally gets the chance to exact his revenge when Ivan’s son Viktor (Florian Munteanu) challenges him to a
fight. As the second chapter to the fight of the century looms ever closer,
Creed begins to realize that what’s at stake is taking its toll on him as both
an athlete and human being.
REVIEW:
1976’s Rocky might not be the first ever sports
movie, but it is surely the first to help popularize the genre for the
mainstream audience. A sports movie does not earn such distinction without
following what’s been established in the Rocky
films. A sports movie often has to feature an underdog as its protagonist, a
training montage, an inspirational, exercise-worthy musical score preferably to
play in the background during the montage sequences and an ending where it’s
either the underdog beating the favorite against all odds or the underdog
losing only to emerge as the champion of the public.
It’s the
archetypal genre formula that’s been repeated in billions of titles ever since
the first Rocky film, and nine times
out of ten, it always works. Why so?
Part of the reason why many people refer to Rocky
as a sports movie than a boxing movie, why Rocky
appeals to even non-sports fans is how it managed to find the parallel between
sports and life philosophy. Quotes like “it ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s
about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward” don’t just apply to the way
a boxer should approach a fight, but also the way a human being should approach
life itself.
It is when MGM
decided to turn Rocky into a
franchise where the narrative starts to lose its way. Rocky just isn’t designed for franchise filmmaking, and the decline
in quality with the sequels is the living proof. The series digressed from a
gritty drama meant to be taken seriously into a self-parody where the presence
of a robotic maid serves as an important subplot in the proceedings.
This is not some
tall tale, ladies and gentlemen. Check Rocky
IV (1985) and everything will make sense.
Fortunately, the
Rocky films went to back to its roots
with the criminally underrated Rocky Balboa
(2006) and its spin-off Creed (2015)
with Apollo’s son Adonis taking on Sylvester
Stallone’s position as the lead protagonist. Still, 2018’s Creed II has both the easiest and
hardest task of being a Rocky film. In
choosing to continue the Creed v. Drago storyline from Rocky IV, Creed II
promises to be most emotional entry in the series. At the same time, Steven Caple Jr., replacing Creed’s Ryan Coogler as director, also has to devise a way to ground some
of the larger-than-life characters and ridiculous plot points from what is one
of the cheesiest entries in the series.
Creed II is by far the best in the series in
terms of the villain’s portrayal. Rocky
films in the past, even the finest ones, have often been accused of having
one-note villains. They’re pretty much the stereotypical bad guy boxer: a
cocky, foul-mouthed contender whose real motivation in fighting the protagonist
is purely to win a championship belt. There’s not much emotional reason to care
for these characters besides athletic achievement. Their presence is just an
excuse to see the protagonist kick their butt. This is by no means saying that
the Rocky films never had a great
villain. Characters like Apollo Creed and Ivan Drago are amongst two of the
most iconic villains in film’s history. Still, it’s hard to deny for most of
these villains the thing that made them interesting are more on their brawns,
less on the personality. Even 1985’s Ivan Drago is essentially the Terminator
with boxing shorts and gloves.
Creed II proves that Ivan Drago also has a
personality to complement with the brawns. He’s much more of a mortal here than
he was in 1985. And this does not in any way soften Drago. There’s still a
shade of his 1985 self seeping throughout, the man who speaks very few words
and an ice-cold glare that’s burning with the desire to break people’s bones
(no pun intended). But with this film, it all makes much more emotional sense
why he is that way. Stallone made
the wise decision in waiting thirty three years to bring Ivan Drago back into
the fold. Thirty years is the appropriate time to turn a man from this
invulnerable force to a vulnerable shell of his former self. He returns a more
disgraced, beaten man, who lost everything in his life. The only two things
keeping him alive are his son Viktor and his hatred towards rival Rocky and his
protégé Adonis.
It is the
narrative’s father and son perspective on the trainer and boxer relationship between
Ivan and Viktor respectively that makes the former more interesting and the
latter even more interesting than the everyday villainous boxer. Creed II pretty much follows the basic
rule of building a great character: a character must be someone whose motive
the audience can understand. And both Ivan Drago and Viktor Drago are exactly
that. Losing a boxing match thirty three
years ago cost Ivan and his son a lot, from the respect of the country, family
reputation and even wife/mother Ludmilla (Brigitte
Nielsen). So, it all makes sense why the pair wants to beat Rocky and
Adonis, and why it means more to them than just boxing. It’s their desire for
revival and vengeance which make every moment they share both deeply moving and
sinister.
As one
father-son story is just beginning, another one continues between Rocky Balboa
and Adonis Creed. It’s the personal way the first Creed film portrayed the boxer and trainer relationship between the
two characters which added a lot more depth to their every interaction. It’s
not just the training sequence that’s inspiring, but also the little moments like
Adonis trying to help Rocky recover from cancer in the first film that’s just
as inspiring.
And once again, Creed II uses the father-son
relationship as the source of the film’s main inspiration and conflict. Yes, it’s
got moments where Rocky is spouting boxing babbles at Adonis from the
turnbuckle. But it also has the human moments, like when a nervous Adonis seeks
advice from Rocky on how to propose to his long-time girlfriend Bianca (Tessa Thompson), which is something
that people, even those who is not a boxing fan, can relate with. And this
time, thanks to the film’s focus on the tragic Creed v. Drago lore, it takes
their relationship to deeper emotional turn. Like their opponents, their next
fight more than just a boxing match. More is at stake for both characters. For
Adonis, the thing that is at stake is his family legacy. For Rocky, the thing
is at stake is Adonis’ well-beings. It’s these differences and their desire to
prevent history from repeating itself that often put them at bigger odds with
each other than ever before as well as further strengthening their bond.
Discussing a Rocky or a Creed film would not be complete without the boxing. The Rocky films have often been praised by
the boxing community for its realistic depiction of the sport, and Creed II is no different. The
long-awaited climactic bout between Creed and Drago alone is the definition of
both cinematic and sporting magic. Round after round, the audience are served
with collective thrills, in its way of capturing the choreography of the sport,
the bloody and sweaty intensity and the live-like atmosphere of the person
making the punches or watching ringside.
The only thing
missing is Coogler’s visual flair. Who
could forget the one-take boxing sequence Coogler
introduced to the series? Not to mention another one-take shot the former
director accomplished to capture Creed’s ring entrance. Coogler’s replacement Steven
Caple Jr. brings a bit of his visual
style to the table, particularly with the extensive use of slow motion editing
to depict the boxers’ impactful blows.
But it’s clear
that Caple Jr. favors emotion over
style. And in a way, that is the more fascinating aspect about a sport. It is
less about the technique and more about the drama surrounding it. In Creed v.
Drago’s case, it is about watching their personal pain come to a head in the
form of a boxing match which makes their bout exciting.
In contrast to
most reboots today, Creed II sticks
very close to the formula. Any Rocky
fans will likely find few surprises with this entry. The narrative plays out
like, well, a typical Rocky film, a Rocky sequel to be exact. As usual, it starts
off with hero being an overnight sensation. Moments later, a new contender
comes to challenge the hero. The hero’s preparation leading up to the fight
takes him on an emotional journey that helps bring him back to earth. By the
time the film ventures into training montage territory, it’s easy to guess the
ending from a million miles away. So often, it’s the correct guess.
On the one hand,
the narrative familiarity can be perceived as Caple Jr. the director showing a sign of respect to the material
he’s given. On the other, the familiarity in this case is a bit
all-too-familiar, to the point that it never quite manifest as its own thing. Ryan Coogler’s Creed is filled to the brim with allusions to past Rocky films, but it’s got enough to be its
own thing. Creed II is so heavily
reliant on Rocky IV for all the
characters’ emotional stake to work, and almost by default, the narrative
choices present here come off as straight retellings of Rocky IV, with only the updated time period and character names
being the noticeable difference. If it
is so, at least, it’s a Rocky IV that
people can take seriously.
By then, it
becomes clear when the film reaches its halfway point that it suddenly decides
to remake half of another Rocky
sequel, Rocky II (1979) in this case.
Fortunately, the narrative’s many rehashed plot points are strung together so
beautifully that these issues come off as mere nitpicks rather than a major
issue. Still though, it is inevitable that Creed
II’s narrative feels like an
identical cover to a great hit than a fresh, different take to it.
Also, Creed II is another case of a sequel
being good at the thing its predecessor is worst at, and slightly worst at the
thing its predecessor is good at. Compared to the on-the-ring conflict between
Adonis Creed and Viktor Drago fight this time around, 2015’s Creed had the privilege of Creed
fighting a more inconsequential boxer in Ricky Conlan (Tony Bellew), allowing more focus in the lead character’s life
outside the ring. As a result, it makes that particular aspect of Creed more interesting than the main
bout itself.
That is not the
case with Creed II. With a story as
tragic and inherent to the Rocky lore
as the Creed v. Drago fight, it is almost impossible for the other new ideas to
compete with the main event. This is by no means saying that those ideas are terrible.
There are some delicate off-the-ring dramatic moments spread throughout the
film, one in particular a subplot involving Creed’s relationship with his wife
Bianca and newborn. Any boxing drama needs such kind of reprieve to remind the
audience that these films are more than just a boxing drama. It’s the human
behind the punches than the punches that matter.
It’s certainly
an aspect that helps further up the stake in his revenge mission against Drago.
But then again, that is also the problem. It’s a reprieve that’s only made more
meaningful as a complement to the Creed v. Drago storyline. It would not have
had the same impact if it had stood on its own. So many times, other subplots
come into the fold, only to be overshadowed by the more interesting boxing drama.
Michael B. Jordan has shown the many facets of his
acting with the variety of projects he’s taken throughout his career and his comeback
as the titular character Adonis Creed is another showcase of the actor’s
chameleon ability. He delivers another knockout performance on both boxing and
acting standpoint. On the ring, in his ripped, agile form, he’s proven that he
can go the distance with professional boxers.
But it’s off the
ring where the fascinating story lies. Jordan
is that rare talent who can go from being level-headed to hot-headed, emotionally
calm to explosive, but still feel human altogether. That’s what’s reflected in
his portrayal of Creed’s son, a character that kind of reminds the avid Rocky fans of Apollo Creed’s quality as
well as Rocky’s quality. He carries with him a lot of his late father’s swagger
and hotheadedness, the kind that earned his father his celebrity status as well
as edged him closer to danger. At the same time, Adonis carries with him his
trainer Rocky’s heart and levelheadedness, the kind that helps him ground his
ego and make him a more caring person. And it’s all these elements that further
validates why he is the right protagonist to keep the Rocky legacy going.
Sylvester Stallone has held the role of Rocky
Balboa for forty two years, and despite all the arguments for John Rambo, this
remains the actor’s best role. Stallone
is physically and spiritually Rocky without a shadow of a doubt. He brought so
much humanity, heart and realness to the character that made it seem like
Rocky Balboa is playing himself than Stallone
playing him. With his other over-the-top action movies, Stallone is playing a character, and with Rocky, he embodies the character.
Now in his early
70’s, Stallone once again embodies the
things that make the character inspirational onscreen and off screen, the
warmth, humility and wisdom as the father figure to Adonis Creed. He could just sit in a room and regale the
audience with his life stories, and it would be as entertaining as watching a
boxing match, such is his presence. He’s that same person people see as the
kind of friendly neighbor in the street and father they wish was real. With Stallone’s recent decision to retire Rocky
(which is indicated through a small moment in the ending), it is a fitting
swansong to an iconic character.
Thirty years on,
Dolph Lundgren is back as Ivan Drago.
As an imposing boxer to fear, he made the role his own in 1985. With much more
to do emotionally in Creed II, he
simply rises to the occasion. It’s welcoming to see Drago be more human, but
even more welcoming that parts of the character still feel like the Drago of
old. Reminiscent of Rocky IV, he
spends the early parts of this film speaking very few words. Any interaction he
has with anyone, especially his son, is through small gestures or a look
through his piercing eyes. But there is no doubt that every time he utters a
line, every time he makes the slightest of gestures, he blossoms with charisma
and vast experience, mirroring Lundgren’s
powerful dramatic performance.
A tradition in
the Rocky films, Creed II casts another professional boxer in its production. In
2018, it is Romanian boxer’s Florian
Munteanu’s turn with the most pivotal role in the film as Viktor Drago. Safe
to say, Munteanu provides the best
performance of a boxer in the Rocky series, particularly with the dramatic
acting. Wearing the boxing gloves and throwing the punch should be the easy
steps. On sheer physicality alone, he just exudes intimidation, particularly in
every scene his mountainous frame stands face-to-face with Michael B. Jordan’s diminutive frame.
Then again, something
that Munteanu’s performance had that
others in past Rocky films and Creed don’t have acting-wise is heart. He
understands that, despite his villainous status, Viktor Drago is as tragic of a
character as Adonis Creed. Like Ivan, Viktor is a human being whose physical
prowess is never enough to overcome a pretty fragile personality. He struggles
to deal with very human issues like maternal abandonment, troubled parenting
style and a tainted family reputation, and Munteanu,
who is given more emotional meat to work with here, proves himself to be a
natural when it comes to channeling these complex emotions.
CONCLUSION:
Creed
II
is packed with more than enough crowd-pleasing punches, high-stakes personal
drama and the series’ most sympathetic villain to date to thrill, even when the
narrative doesn’t take as much risk as its titular boxer. Its third act’s bout
alone is worth the money.
Score: 8.5/10
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