CREED II Review

The "sins of the father" idea has been played out time and time again since first making its appearance in the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy, but never has it been so deliciously executed as it is in Creed II given the poetry or, as one commentator within the film calls it, "Shakespearean" nature of one Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan), the son of former heavyweight world champion Apollo Creed, coming face to face with the son of Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) some thirty-three years after he killed his father in what was supposed to be an exhibition match. The weight of these circumstances would certainly be hailed as nothing short of mythic to any innocent bystander filled in on the details just prior to the projector heating up and then rolling the whole of Creed II, but for anyone who has seen or been a fan of the Rocky franchise for any amount of time and has specifically basked in the glory of all that is simultaneously great and terrible about Rocky IV then it's not as difficult to see how easily Creed II could have turned into an unmitigated dumpster fire that was unable to capitalize on the great mythology of these events because it couldn't re-configure the tone. The tone of Rocky IV, while featuring Rocky's most formidable opponent and the death of his former enemy turned best friend, is somehow largely light and alarmingly disengaged from the consequences of any of the actions any of the characters take, but what it has afforded this new generation of Rocky films that take the name Creed is the opportunity to see these events through an era where sequels aren't simply cash grabs, but rather that they are taken seriously and can be exceptionally executed pieces of cinema depending on the creative team and the amount of freedom afforded them. In taking advantage of the studio who wanted to take advantage of credible filmmakers who were interested in continuing the story of Rocky Balboa, the result so far has been two films that not only revel in the training montages set to motivational music or intensely choreographed boxing matches (though they still take full advantage of these staples), but films that are also genuinely interested in chronicling the present generation and how they operate based on the influence (and sins) of those that came before them. Whereas 2015's Creed showed us Jordan's Adonis figuring out who he wanted to be and overcoming the obstacles and shadow of his father to get there, Creed II continues this development by pushing our protagonist past the point in life where his father found himself; forcing the new heavyweight champ to determine how history will define him outside of being the son of Apollo Creed.

First Trailer for CREED II Starring Michael B. Jordan

There is both much to be excited and much to be pessimistic about when it comes to Creed II. This sequel to the 2015 Ryan Coogler-directed film that continued the story of former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa as he served as a trainer to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend Apollo Creed, is a sequel MGM and Warner Bros. wanted to move forward with despite Coogler's obligation to Marvel and Black Panther. That is the first point of concern as Coogler, who had made only one feature prior to Creed, the cutting Fruitvale Station (also starring Michael B. Jordan), is/was a voice on the rise and it was his touch that made Creed a vital part of the Balboa mythology rather than just another way to capitalize on a known brand. For the sequel, the studios brought in Steven Caple Jr. who has also only directed only a single feature thus far, but has a fair amount of TV work on his résumé including episodes of Grown-ish and the documentary miniseries, Rapture, about hip-hop's impact on global culture that is now available to stream on Netflix. I haven't seen any of Caple's previous work, but judging by the look and feel of this first trailer it seems the guy has a capable pair of hands that this franchise has thankfully been placed in. They say the greatest weapon in a director's arsenal is a strategically placed song and even if Caple had no input on the trailer itself the use of Kendrick Lamar‘s “DNA” is a perfect pairing that indicates what is hopefully the overall tone and style of the picture. The other aspect that is somewhat concerning is the fact Sylvester Stallone penned the script for this thing along with Luke Cage scribe Cheo Hodari Coker, but to what degree they collaborated is unknown. Yes, it's a nice thought the writer/director/star of the original Rocky film has such a heavy hand in continuing the arc of characters born out of his original franchise, but given the plot details we know thus far it seems reasonable to worry this might be a re-hash of what has come before rather than Jordan's Adonis and his family unit making the franchise their own. Then again, I did enjoy 2013's Homefront so what do I know? All of that said, this trailer is indeed pretty great and if the final film carries out the energy and drama hinted at here I can't imagine being disappointed in what Caple, Stallone, and Coker have cooked up. Creed II also stars Florian Munteanu, Dolph Lundgren, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad, Wood Harris, Andre Ward, Russell Hornsby, and opens November 21st, 2018.