"If you wanna give pain, you gotta be willing to take the pain."

Rating: 8/10 (3 May 2019)

For me, "Rocky IV" was the low point for the movie franchise, being it was cobbled together with a bunch of scenes from the prior three movies, loaded up with a resounding soundtrack, and having what I consider some of the most cliched dialog you'll ever find in any film. Oddly, "Creed II" follows some of the same pattern as 'IV', but works in a much more effective way by delivering new takes on the boxing angles and providing a human dimension to Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) and his relationship with wife Bianca (Tessa Thompson). Perhaps the most obvious similarity to "Rocky IV" was the desert training scenes that mimic Rocky's (Sylvester Stallone) intense preparation for the Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) match in the Russian countryside. That to be contrasted with Viktor Drago's more polished training regimen under the tutelage of his father, maybe not as technologically monitored as in the earlier film, but enough to demonstrate a contrast between the two fighters.
For whatever reason, it seemed to me like the actual fight scenes and the buildup to them were rushed in this picture. I had to watch the movie in two separate installments because of time constraints, so that might have affected my thinking. Given all the emotional significance attached to the importance of a Russian victory, both personal for Viktor and for the country's prestige, I thought it was out of character for Ivan Drago to end the match by the throwing in the towel for his son. However it did appear that Viktor's resolve to continue the fight crumbled when he noticed the empty arena seat vacated by his mother (Brigitte Nielsen), who left early rather than endure the despair of her son's defeat. That would also have played into his father's decision to end the bout.
Now that the Rocky franchise has spanned more than four decades since the original movie back in 1976, one would think it would be high time to call it quits, but I wouldn't bet on it. Adonis Creed is still the World Heavyweight Champ with additional challenges to face, and there's still that issue of baby daughter Amara's hearing left unresolved. That could have been successfully handled here, but if it can contribute to yet another sequel, then I guess, why not?