Let's Get Ready To Rumble! Creed III Review!
SPOILER WARNING!
The third installment of the incredible "Creed" franchise has hit theaters and what a movie this is! I have an interesting story with this franchise as I hadn't seen the first two films until I watched both of them back-to-back and instantly fell in love with it! This movie has so much in it and I am excited to review it for you all! These are my thoughts and opinions but let's review "Creed III"!
You know how these reviews work. Let's look at the cast:
Michael B. Jordan- Adonis Creed
Tessa Thompson- Bianca Creed
Jonathan Majors- Damian Anderson
Wood Harris- Tony "Little Duke" Burton
Phylicia Rashad- Mary-Anne Creed
Mila Davis-Kent- Amara Creed
There are more talented actors in this film, but due to attention span, I only picked these. Now we can get into the review.
The "Creed" franchise is one that I never watched but instantly fell in love with as soon as I watched them. I love the history behind the Creed name and the history that we see from the "Rocky" films, which I was when I was younger. I'm a sucker for good spin-offs and this franchise is a great example of a good one. From pulling history and connections with past characters to recalling events is something that really makes a spin-off great. I do have some issues with "Creed III", but I have so many positives about it that outweigh the small negatives. Let's start with those negatives and like a boxing match, let's finish the review strong with the positives.
I truly love the story of Adonis Creed and his story and upbringing. From not wanting his father's name to being his own person that has that powerful name, Adonis had a rough life. However, with these types of movies, you can already see how it will end or what the outcome will be. This film definitely has a cookie cutter story that starts with someone coming back into Adonis' life that he tried to forget and has to deal with his past and his emotions of a really hard time he went through. I did however wish they had one main stay in Adonis' life that had helped him out in so many life issues and in a majority of his fights and that is Rocky Balboa. I understand the real-life issues that went on with Stallone and people that caused him not to be in the film, but he was definitely missed. They had lines that Rocky would tell Adonis, but that's it. No mention, no fake phone call, no nothing. To me this missing ingredient was definitely noticeable, and it missed out on some personable moments we could've had. This was my biggest issue during the entire movie. I knew going in that we wouldn't see Rocky, but I really wish we did.
This movie had some great moments in it, but I will name a few of mine for you. Again, the film is really good, and I highly recommend it, but these were positives. I tried thinking of the MVP of the movie but I really couldn't pick just one so I will pick the trio of Jordan, Thompson and Majors. These three were phenomenal in this film and really made you feel like you were a part of their life and this story. Another positive was how well the pacing was in the film. There was never a moment that lacked time or needed more time. Each scene felt just right with either emotion, comedy or action and didn't drown in the moment. When a scene needed to be emotional, it was and same goes for the humor and action. Before I get into my biggest positive, I would kick myself if I didn't talk about the family aspect in this film. Young actress Mila Davis-Kent was really good in this film. Davis-Kent is deaf in both the movie and in real life, but that did not stop her from bringing sass, emotion and energy into "Creed III". The Creed family is all about fighting that uphill battle and not giving up. The family is also going through changes, and you can see the different lifestyle getting to them in some moments.
Alright, let's get to the biggest positive, the action. For this movie to be Jordan's directorial debut, he absolutely nailed it with the boxing in this film. One thing I noticed in the film was that Jordan put some bits and pieces of Anime in the film which was awesome to see! When you hear Michael B. Jordan speaks about Anime; he loves it so seeing some of the vibes of "Dragon Ball" and "Naruto" was really cool to see. The picture above was the vibe I got between Adonis and Damian which is that brotherly love but still rivals like Goku and Vetega from "Dragon Ball Z". One scene that sticks out to me was during the final fight, both boxers take a hard swing at one another, and both land a hit before the bell sounds. You can see the influence that Anime has on Jordan and for him to add these little references was awesome! I felt every single punch that was given, and I even found myself bobbing and weaving with the boxers like I was in the ring. If you like Boxing and Anime, this movie is defiantly for you.
Overall, I think this is a fantastic movie and I highly recommend it. This franchise has been one that I have fallen in love with quickly. I do wish we saw Rocky in this film, but the positives make up for it. The action was intense and even though the story was cookie cutter like, it still had phenomenal acting performances that leave you impacted. I know I left impressed and hyped up.