One step, one punch, one round at a time.

Rating: 7/10 (30 April 2016)

Ryan Coogler's Creed feels more like a reboot, as good as can be, of original Rocky than like the next part in the Rocky series. Creed builds on Rocky movies' blueprint, adding emotional depth and family drama to the mix. Creed is more of a family drama than a sports drama. Emotional layers are slowly and expertly unraveled and emotional gravity reaches its zenith when Adonis Creed confides to Rocky, in the last fight, that he wants to prove to the world that he is not a mistake. Still Creed doesn't fail to pack a punch in its realistic, intense and close-up shot boxing and training sequences, during which I felt my adrenaline rush frequently. Character's depth and acting is uniformly excellent, except for Bianka's, whose role though necessary felt forced. Adonis Creed's and Rocky Balboa's relationship is as central to the plot as is Creed's journey to make his own legacy. Creed has enough flesh to make its own legacy, while it has enough references to pay homage to the Rocky series. I strongly recommend Creed to drama, sports or otherwise, lovers. To others, watch it if you have nothing else to catch on.