Joseph Rossi for Curtains Up
Creed is not supposed to work. Rocky 7? Please. I rolled my eyes at the concept, at the trailer, up until during the coming attractions. After the film was over, I was almost in tears. How could I have been so wrong? This is the best Rocky film, since — Rocky. And it’s not even about Rocky Balboa but instead, it’s about the son of his onetime enemy turned friend, the late Apollo Creed. Director Ryan Coogler has made an amazing film here. One that sneaks up on you and sucker punches you in the heart.
The film follows the franchise formula. But it’s okay. We need corn at the movies. After the depressing trend of ultra realistic films out there, it’s nice to be taken for a fantastical ride. And don’t let anyone tell you that these films aren’t fantasies. They’re just good, old fashioned movies about determination. They are Frank “Capraesque” in my opinion. Novice fighter Adonis Creed (Michael B Jordan) is mad at the world once he finds out he is the bastard son of a legend, he gets advice and training by a seasoned old boxer (Sylvester Stallone) and gets the shot of a lifetime only due to his lineage. Of course this never would happen in a million years but who cares. As a grown man who was weaned on the Rocky films, this stuff is like candy.
Jordan is great as Adonis. He brings just as and a little bit more intensity then Stallone did all those years ago. Having the weight of a famous dad on his shoulders wears him down and it shows. The façade does break when the “Adrian” of this film, a singer, played by an excellent Tessa Thompson, starts to tap into his emotional core. But the film belongs to Stallone, whose character of Rocky Balboa remains his best and crucial creation. In the “Mickey” role, he brings his usual warmth and sensitivity but this time around, with everyone around him gone or having passed away, there is such loneliness behind his sad and droopy eyes. To watch him is to watch a seasoned veteran at the height of his powers and Stallone has never been better. Oscar nomination, please. I mean it.
