‘Creed’ is a knockout

Since his introduction in 1976’s Best Picture Oscar-winning “Rocky”, underdog boxer Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) has been one of cinema’s most beloved characters, and his tale of a loser with a once-in-a-lifetime shot is one that has become the template for nearly every sports movie that followed.

Given the image that Stallone would later build as an action icon, it’s easy to forget that the so-called Italian Stallion won a Best Screenplay Academy Award for writing the “Rocky” script. While the scripts all the way through the next five sequels were also written by Stallone, their quality (though crowd-pleasing for the most part) had grown increasingly more ludicrous. As a direct result of this decline, along with “Rocky V’s” poor box office in 1990, many believed the series to have run its course.

In 2006, a sixth film was released to a skeptical public, opening with its lead character facing a situation very much similar to Stallone’s then-flagging Hollywood career, looking for one last shot at redemption. Unpretentiously written and directed by Stallone from the heart, the film was a return to glory that distilled its protagonist to his essence and reminded audiences what they loved about him in the first place.

Now, in 2015, a new writer/director at the helm, we have a seventh film in the franchise, with the focus on the illegitimate son (Michael B. Jordan) of Balboa’s former-nemesis-turned-best-friend Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). Going by the name of Adonis Johnson, Jordan’s character is a young man with a chip on his shoulder and a legacy to build. Not wanting to rely on the reputation of a father who died (at the hands of Dolph Lundgren in “Rocky IV”) before he was born, Johnson seeks out the help of the only man he feels can understand the desire to prove oneself in the ring: Rocky Balboa.

The chemistry between Michael B. Jordan in the titular role and Sylvester Stallone as the elder Rocky drives the film. Photos: Warner Bros. Pictures

Initially, Rocky refuses, but his familiarity with where Johnson is coming from, and a heretofore unrealized desire to get back into the sport he never quite left behind following the deaths of brother-in-law Paulie (Burt Young) and beloved wife Adrian (Talia Shire), the former champ agrees to train Johnson. When the camp of a beaten opponent leaks the truth about Johnson’s identity to the media, it isn’t long before the world’s best pound-for-pound boxer makes the decision to challenge the child of the legendary Apollo Creed.

With a set-up like that, one would imagine “Creed” to be, at most, a shameless cash-in that didn’t know to leave well enough alone (following the previous film’s brilliant swan song) and, at worst, an unmitigated disaster. Fortunately, scriptwriter and director Ryan Coogler (who directed “Fruitvale Station,” which also starred Jordan), never lets the proceedings slide into mediocrity. From the opening sequence where we are introduced to a pre-teen Johnson and Mrs. Creed (“The Cosby Show’s” Phylicia Rashad, taking over for Sylvia Meals), to the heart-stopping fight that makes up the final act, it is clear that Coogler has a deep respect for the characters and world Stallone created.

As Johnson, Jordan excels, erasing any and all memory of his participation in “Fantastic Four” earlier this year. Coming across as likable and with a definite screen presence, Jordan embodies the role of a young pup hungry to make his name. Behind the scenes, Jordan trained for over a year to credibly portray a fighter, and the effort shows with Adonis displaying what could very well be the most realistic boxing ever committed to film.

Where the old “Rocky” movies were testaments to heart and the power of the human spirit, no one watching them would ever accuse them of being works of art, much less accurate representations of boxing. With “Creed”, fighters still take more abuse than any human plausibly could, but for once, the moves are authentic, and the extraordinary cinematography by Maryse Alberti mean you have never seen a boxing flick that looked like this.

In the ring and out, Jordan is credible as a young boxer with something to prove.

Meanwhile, as Rocky, Stallone is back in the role he was born to play, looking for all the world like he never stopped, and showing a surprisingly vulnerable version of his signature character. Given how the “Rocky” films have always paralleled where their lead actor was at that particular stage of his career, it should come as no surprise that “Creed” features Rocky handing the reins to a new fighter, but in a manner infinitely more satisfying than his similar attempt in “The Expendables 3”.

While one could live quite happily without any further entries in the saga of Rocky Balboa, one can’t wait to see what future chapters featuring Johnson, who is going by his father’s surname by film’s end, might hold in store. As long as the filmmakers don’t overreach and stick to Rocky’s advice of, “One punch, one round, one fight,” at a time, whatever comes next should be a main event well worth watching. — BM, GMA News

"Creed" is now showing in cinemas.