Review of Creed II (2018) by Dennis_Gt — 26 Nov 2018

This was...OK. A totally adequate sequel with some good acting (Jordan & Thompson), some good fight choreography, and some questionable writing. It's not as subtle or original as the first Creed film, and it's also not as entertaining or over-the-top as Rocky III or Rocky IV. If I had to compare it to the earlier Rocky films, it feels the most like Rocky 2. A movie that was more predictable and not as good as the original and was overly weighed down by clunky family drama that wasn't written particularly well and didn't advance the plot or add depth to the characters. On top of that, this movie has what must be the tenth "you can't take this fight, you can't win!" speech given in a Rocky film, but it makes absolutely no sense. The writer DID do a good job of giving Drago and his son more depth and motivation then any villain in the latter Rocky sequels, but it also has a fight in RUSSIA in 2018 and never mentions the political climate...and never really explains WHY it has to be in Russia since Drago is a contender looking to fight the champ and would have zero leverage to dictate his own terms. Sly was GREAT in Creed. He's kind of lost here. And that's probably the writing, too. It's like they have no idea what to do with him. And for some reason he's still broke despite managing a super star boxer that I would assume exists in a world similar to the real world, where even a middle weight champ like Canelo Alvarez has sponsorship deals worth over $300 million.

Overall, this is a clumsy film. Which doesn't mean it's not entertaining or there aren't good parts. But I can't see it becoming an all time favorite of anyone like Creed, Rocky, Rocky III, or Rocky IV.