The son of late great Apollo Creed enlists the help of Rocky in order to make a name for himself and prove his own worth.

Rating: 9/10 (30 November 2015)

When Rocky first tapped his gloves up to fight heavyweight champion Apollo Creed, I wasn't even an idea born in the minds of my parents. When Rocky steps back into the ring with Apollo after embarrassingly working at a meat packing plant, I was still six years away from coming into this world. It wasn't until colossal Soviet heavyweight Ivan Drago broke Apollo, shattering Rocky's world that I was conceived, though it would be another nine months until I came out kicking and screaming. Having watched all the films as a kid I continually found myself surrounded by those who favored Rocky IV, which features one of the most iconic beginnings, only to become a sagging punching bag in its remaining acts. Rocky trains high in the mountains and eventually trades unprotected blows with Ivan Drago, Russia's super soldier masquerading as a boxer. It's a big bloated boxing movie that acts as an ode to America and a polished finger to Cold War Russia amidst a time when the boxing sub-genre was starting to wear thin. Among all the training montages, "I will break you!" one liners and inaudible accents, there lies a ferocity that rouses the spirit and sets up the story perfectly, only to trip over its shoes and land chin first on the uppercut of the cinema spirit. When one witnesses Apollo Creed's lifeless body hit the mat, the beast at the heart of Rocky IV loses its claws, ultimately pawing at the screen in an attempt to bring new life into it.
That's where Creed comes in, writer/director Ryan Coogler's second full length feature that once again reunites him with Fruitvale Station actor Michael B. Jordan, who ignited the screen as real life tragedy Oscar Grant III in 2009. Coogler takes the story of Rocky IV and deflates some of the excess muscle and brawn that it carried, focusing on the death of Apollo as the catalyst for his second round with Michael B. Jordan. Creed quickly introduces us to Adonis Johnson, the late son of Apollo, who is duking it in and out of foster care and juvi as a kid only to be introduced and brought home with his biological mother Mary Anne Creed (Phylicia Rashad). We learn that Apollo had an affair with Mary who got pregnant and gave birth around the time of his death, only to give him up to foster care being unable to handle the pressures of being a single parent. Flash forward years later in which Adonis has a stable job, a lavish home with his mother, and a budding underground boxing career south of the border living in Los Angeles. Looking to further his interest in boxing and take it to the next level, Adonis moves to Philadelphia in search of Apollo Creed's old friend Rocky Balboa, who he feels can mentor him and train him to the top.
From the moment we see Michael B. Jordan as Adonis Johnson, sitting in a dark, dank basement of an underground ring somewhere in Mexico, there's an intensity that permeates the air. His built physique, clenched jaw and focused gaze reminds us of what a determined and toned actor Jordan is, a blistering powerhouse and cinematic firework that works with a long wick, relishing the slow burn before exploding on screen like a lion protecting his food. You may wonder what Jordan has to protect, having chewed up the screen in the vastly under- appreciated Fruitvale Station, and the answer is everything. Stepping into the ring as Creed's offspring and Rocky's trainee, there's a wealth of history that accompanies this role, a history that both Jordan and Coogler can just as easily choke on if handled poorly. When we witness Adonis stare deep into his opponent, he isn't looking at his next fighter but at the core of what fuels him, what drives him to continue hunting and eating.
Working against the hunger that reaches out of Adonis with both gloves on is a remarkably soft, and poised performance by Sylvester Stallone as Rocky Balboa, who seems content at owning an Italian restaurant named after his late wife Adriane. Seeing his steadfast and content nature outside the ring recites a quiet life of devotion and love for what once fueled him. Stallone works with a character he wrote almost forty years ago and a character he directed for four Rocky movies, bringing a vast understanding of his nature that subdues and tames the fiery determination within Adonis. It's a role that Stallone never would have been able to perfect and fall into had he not been the age he is now, firmly understanding the patience and grace that comes with true experience. Near the third act there is a slight role reversal, as Adonis must cut off the gloves he's tied so tight in order to take care of his mentor that works brilliantly at not only developing our characters but showcasing the strength of the actors. Watching two characters from opposite ends of life's vast stage cling to each other for ample footing is cinematic virtuosity with finesse for storytelling. It's something only two actors at the top of their respective game, one rising while the other peaks can truly pull off, allowing us to bear witness to the power of film....Read the rest at www.reelbrew.tumblr.com