Didn't have the same impact than the earlier Rocky movies! 5/10

Rating: 5/10 (15 May 2019)

Review:
I've grown up watching the Rocky movies, and I always used to get excited when I heard that Sylvester Stallone was working on another one, but they went downhill after the 4th instalment. Now with the Creed movies taking over, the first movie was quite good, but this film just seemed like a "Mish Mash" version of the 4th movie, were Rocky went toe to toe with the gigantic Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren), who was basically a laboratory experiment. In this movie, Creed (Michael B. Jordan) is out for revenge against Drago's son, Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu), who is quickly moving up the ranks, and seeking the heavyweight champion belts. After losing his dad in the ring during a fight against Ivan, Adonis (Creed) agrees to fight Viktor, but without the backing from Rocky, who thinks the fight is a bad idea. I did find the movie quite slow, from the beginning to the end, and the fighting scenes weren't as dramatic as the earlier Rocky movies. The whole concept was, more or less, exactly the same as Rocky 4, and the predictable storyline, which had some corny lines, did become a bit tedious after a while, but it's what's we have grown to expect from Rocky/Creed movies. Michael B. Jordan seems to act the same in all of his movies, so his performance wasn't that surprising, but once he had the baby, and he actually took the fight seriously, it was good to see an emotional character who became more technical with his fighting skills. I did realise a Father/Sons theme, which must have been hard for Sylvester Stallone after losing his son, Sage Stallone in 2012 at the young age of 36. Anyway, I didn't get that "underdog coming good" feeling after watching this movie, but it's watchable, once it eventually gets going. I would have liked to have seen some banter between Ivan and Rocky, and it would have been good to hear Viktor speak. As we live in a day and age of endless remakes, I doubt that another franchise is ever going to able to give you that amazing feeling that you get when you hear the Rocky theme again, and the fight choreography looks more staged than intense like the olden days, which is why this average movie didn't meet all expectations. On paper, the thought of Ivan and Apollo's sons coming face to face in the ring sounds like it's going to be a movie spectacular but it lacked the action and intensity that the original Ivan vs. Rocky fight did. A lot of time was wasted on Adonis's back story, which made complete sense in one way, but I personally just wanted to see the fight. With opponents like Apollo, Mr. T and Ivan Drago, Viktor certainly looked the perfect candidate but he wasn't that entertaining out of the ring. I just think that it's time for a new boxing franchise, with some flamboyant characters who will light up the screen. Watchable!
Round-Up:
This movie was directed by Steven Caple Jr., who also brought you the Land in 2016. As this is his first major release, he wouldn't have been my first choice to direct a movie which could affect a whole franchise. He did a decent job, but he seemed to have followed the Rocky handbook, more than trying something fresh and new. One of the things that let this movie down, was the annoying backing track, which made the film feel cheap and a bit stale. With Rocky IV being the most successful movie in the Rocky franchise, taking in $127million, closely followed by Rocky III, which was my favourite, I'm not surprised that they chose this concept to carry on the Creed franchise. It would be good to see Mr. T talking trash again, but that's just wishful thinking. Anyway, Creed II definitely didn't have the impact that the early Rocky movies did, but it's still a decent boxing movie, which had some emotional moments.
Budget: $50million
Worldwide Gross: $214million
Genre: Drama, Sport
Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad, Dolph Lundgren, Florian Munteanu, Russell Hornsby, Wood Harris, Brigitte Nielsen and Milo Ventimiglia. 5/10