Review of Creed II (2018) by Davrosdaleks1 — 03 Dec 2018

Enjoyed this as much as the first Creed. Well directed, especially considering that this is the director's first big budget film.

The best thing about the film is that it has something missing from the Rocky franchise after IV, a really good opponent. Whereas Ivan Drago was like a machine, his son Victor is more like a vicious animal in his fighting style. He actually seems agitated while having to wait to fight. It doesn't hurt that he is a mountain of a man. He's also the most sympathetic villain in the Rocky canon. Once I learned his history and motivations, I honestly didn't have it in me to root against him.

The cast is great all across the board. Again, Sylvester Stallone has Rocky nailed down. Although Adonis Creed has his moments of bad decisions and lashing out in a jerky and immature manner, Michael B. Jordan does such a great job of expressing his vulnerability and raw emotion that you can't be upset at him. Although it is a small role, Russell Hornsby has an excellent scene as a pragmatic and opportunistic fight promoter. You kind of wish he was in more of this. This is also probably Dolph Lundgren's best acting.

The only major downside is that the movie suffers from following similar plot beats from other films in the franchise.