Creed - Movie Review - Film Geek Guy

At first glance, you might suspect 'Creed' as the unnecessary spin-off of the 'Rocky' franchise. The trend of having a character star in his own movie in an established series doesn't have a smooth track record in Hollywood. Maybe it's because the main star isn't that interesting to drive his own story, or the whole product doesn't make sense at all. Under the right hands and proper care, you can make something that can make a name of itself, which what 'Creed' does.

One can pinpoint every single thing re-hashed from the 1976 film 'Rocky' in this film. But does it matter? To my surprise, no. Watching this might be a very familiar viewing at times, but the over-all structure of the latter is still effective and remarkable up to now. What Ryan Coogler does here isn't strictly a spin-off movie pushing itself in the 'Rocky'-lore but establishing a fresh face that happens to be in the universe. He brought the edginess and roughness of Philadelphia, in a way that you live and breathe the air the characters on-screen are absorbing. It felt very real, and thank goodness they didn't end up going for the cartoony-antics of 'Rocky IV' and 'V'.

'Creed' isn't really about the title character but a relationship between Adonis Creed and Rocky Balboa. There's a nice dynamic between the two as they are both have emptiness in their lives. Adonis has been looking for a father figure after her father Apollo died before he was born, and Rocky who is one of Apollo's best friends is all alone now with his wife and friends gone because of old age. So through training for a boxing match, the two suddenly learned to help each other and cope with each other's missing puzzles.

Sylvester Stallone brought one of the most memorable performance of the year (and maybe his entire career) on his return as Rocky Balboa. The moment he appears on-screen, he immediately stole the scene. His magnetizing return as this iconic character was like meeting an old friend out of the blue. Stallone easily triumphs everyone here without trying, he's that good here. As for Jordan, everyone knows what he is capable of ever since 'Fruitvale Station', and he proved he can do more here.

Another plausible thing about this movie is the boxing scenes. And surprise, surprise, (Correct me if i'm wrong here) the actors do their own boxing stunts here, and it was glorious. Adonis' first boxing match is an evidence which the filmmakers' presented in a seamless long-take. The choreography of each punches and hits are extremely impressive, and one cannot deny the awe each would have in the boxing scenes especially with that master-filmmaking approaches on every one of them.

'Creed' is one of the biggest surprise of the year, and actually one of the best. Stallone and Jordan are true hard-hitters with very captivating performances. The filmmaking team led by Ryan Coogler is plausible, and creates a remarkable although familiar story that is powerful as it is moving,

The geek rates it 10/10!

'Creed' is now showing in cinemas nationwide from Warner Bros. Pictures Philippines!