Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad
Director: Ryan Coogler
Genre: Drama
Duration: 133 minutes
Now showing: Cinema Magic Metroplex Mall Naalya and Century Cinemax Acacia Mall Kisementi
There are not many movie characters that have lived through different generations, maintaining the same actor, like Rocky Balboa. Since the 1970s, Sylvester Stallone, who came up with the professional boxing character, has played Rocky. Creed is the seventh Rocky film, and the second to be well received, since the first one came out.
Creed follows Donnie (Jordan), the illegitimate son of Apollo Creed, a boxing champion whose fame in the ring was legendary, if you have watched the first Rocky movies. When Donnie gets into a bind, Mary Anne (Rashad), Apollo’s wife takes him in. Donnie then decides he wants to take up boxing. While Mary Anne is not warm to the idea, considering how her husband died (spoiler alert if you are just watching the Rocky movies), she tries to get him into a prestigious boxing club. When that does not pan out, Donnie seeks out his father’s friend Rocky.
Rocky grudgingly starts training Donnie until he gets into the ring, then we get to see what it means to try and get out of a father’s shadow. We also get to see Rocky struggle with the will to fight back, even when that fight is not in the ring. Finally, and what has contributed a great deal to endearing this movie to fans, is seeing a coach lean on his student as much as the student leans on him. The bonus is that there is a love story amid all this machismo so it is not a bad choice for date night .
I must confess that the Rocky series was getting a little tiring to keep up with so first, I commend whoever decided to call this installment Creed. Sure Rocky fans would have been attracted but anyone else who was getting fatigued with the entire thing might have stayed away. Also, getting Ryan Coogler to direct the movie was a good call. His noteworthy work on Fruitvale Station precedes him, and he brought a freshness to the series while maintaining the general feel of it. Michael B. Jordan also starred in that movie so there is good chemistry between the two. Hope this means we will be seeing more collaboration between them. Stallone is good but we have become too accustomed to seeing him as indestructible. Creed let him pull at our emotional chords and get to see a little more of his softer side. It is a breath of fresh air!
