Rocky Balboa is back to knock out all his rivals in the box office in a film that is not Rocky-centric, but he still does it so amazingly through mentoring Adonis Creed. Decades after the first "Rocky" film battered our hearts as we rooted for the underdog, Sylvester Stallone is back to completely pummel our hearts with overwhelming emotions following the boxing journey of his former rival turned friend's illegitimate son.
"Creed" stars Michael B. Jordan as Adonis or, as Rocky calls him, "Donny," the illegitimate son of Apollo Creed, Rocky's rival in the 1976 film and friend and trainer in the second to fourth. Adonis is orphaned at a young age and is forced to live in group homes, which does not give him any type of emotional support and leads him to become angry at the world. At least until Apollo's widow, Mary Anne, decides to rescue and adopt him despite knowing the truth.
Adonis finally begins to live a better life with a mother who treats him as if she gave birth to him. To not become a disappointment to the woman who saved him from a rough life, he decides to live his life sensibly, tries to become more responsible and to make the most out of his college education. Of course, it wouldn't be a "Rocky" spin-off if there is no boxing involved, so the audience will eventually discover that Adonis has been fighting secretly in Tijuana.
Boxing is in Adonis' blood so he goes off to find Rocky Balboa in Philly, urge the retired boxer to train him and make a name for himself. The rest of the story shows Adonis' failures, triumphs and the lessons he learns will keep battering our already bleeding hearts.
Stallone was phenomenal and so was Jordan who matched Stallone's acting chops, but they would have to move over a little to make space for "Creed" Director and Co-writer Ryan Coogler, who did an amazing job handling a much loved franchise without pulling down the success it has garnered through the decades.
"Time takes everybody out. It's undefeated," Rocky tells Adonis in one scene. For the "Rocky" franchise, however, time has yet to make that knock-out move.
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