Creed III review: Michael B. Jordan delivers TKO in directorial debut

Sylvester Stallone‘s notable absence is the only blemish in Creed III, which is a stellar continuation of the Rocky and Creed franchises.

From terrific fight scenes to working alongside a deaf actor, Michael B. Jordan didn’t make it easy on himself as a first-time director. With Creed III, Jordan has shepherded a movie that is one of the best in the Rocky franchise. Creed III doesn’t quite reach the crescendo of the Rocky-Adonis relationship in the first Creed film. However, there are aspects of Creed III that are better than the first Creed film.

Creed III has hands down the best villain of the Creed films and features the best boxing match in the trilogy. After his villain turn as Kang in the MCU, Jonathan Majors is sensational as Damian. Adonis and Damian were friends at the same group home. Damian was an up-and-coming boxer but was arrested for carrying a firearm. Adonis managed to escape and capture Damian’s dream of being a champ.

Jordan has tremendous chemistry with everyone in the film. The dynamic between Bianca (Tessa Thompson) and Adonis continues to be the best relationship in the Rocky cinematic universe. The chemistry between Majors and Jordan is off-the-charts. Finally, the warmest scenes are between Adonis and his deaf daughter Amara. The struggle between how to curb Amara’s aggressive tendencies at school is a surprisingly moving story beat in Creed III.

Outside of Stallone’s absence, the only other blemish is the lack of a community tie to the training sequences. However, the performances, fight sequences, Joseph Shirley‘s score and Jordan’s direction beat the odds once again.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into Creed III. The Creed franchise is available to stream on Amazon Prime.

Brothers to rivals in Creed III

Every scene between Majors and Jordan cackles with uneasy tension. As much as Adonis has endured, he’s also a character that’s known for running when he can’t control the situation. When Damian reintroduces himself to Adonis after 18 years, the scene immediately takes Adonis back to a scarred childhood he thought he escaped.

Behind his impressive physique, Majors is a master of subtlety. He’s upfront about what he wants, but his true intentions are a mask. From the moment he shows up on-screen, Adonis and Bianca have a tough time getting a read on him.

After Adonis provides Damian with a shot at his gym, it doesn’t take Damian long to ask for a title shot against Felix Chavez who is Adonis’s champion fighter. Adonis refuses Damian’s initial request. However, similar to the fight in the first Creed film, an injury allows Adonis to insert his friend as an underdog.

The climactic fight is sensational and manages to tell a story in physical form that reflects the film’s emotional beats. The emotional conflict is over the arrest that sent Damian to prison. Adonis started a fight with a man who caused him harm. The man’s crews jumped Adonis and Damian was forced to pull a gun to stop the fight. Suddenly, the police showed up. Damian surrendered and Adonis ran.

The screenplay by Keenan Coogler and Zacy Braylin alongside Jordan’s direction excels at showing the best and worst in Adonis and Damian. Yes, Damian’s the antagonist, but Adonis isn’t an angel and that makes the conflict all the more appealing.

Raising fighters

Mary-Anne Creed (Phylicia Rashad, wonderful), Bianca and Adonis all wrestle with what it means to be a parent. More specifically, how do you teach your child when to fight and when to walk away?

One of the best storylines in the franchise has been the relationship between Mary-Anne and Adonis. They’ve had plenty of conflicts in the other films and Creed III has another disagreement. After Damian went to prison, he wrote letters to Adonis, which Mary-Anne kept from him. Damian mentions the letters to Adonis in their first meeting. Adonis doesn’t say anything. Mary-Anne looks at the letters again and shows them to Adonis as well as a photo that shows Damian taking advantage of Adonis.

Meanwhile, Bianca and Adonis also wrestle with a situation involving their daughter Amara. A classmate tries to bully Amara and she responds like her father.

Bianca wants Amara to express her emotions first. Adonis thinks that’s great, but sometimes you have to hit someone first for the lesson to really sink in. The relationship between Adonis and Amara is really sweet. In an interesting reflection into what Adonis’s life could have been with Apollo, Amara is enamored with her father’s boxing career. She’s watched all of his fights and eventually, Adonis provides some boxing tips. He also reveals a lesson he needs to take to heart. Fighting is about control.

The ending of the film seems to hint at Amara following in her father’s footsteps. Creed III‘s final scene is proof that with the right support, you can beat your demons into submission.

Sacrifice

Mary-Anne and Bianca represent the sacrifice necessary to love Adonis.

Bianca has sacrificed her music career to a degree. She still sings, produces, and writes songs and has a number of gold records. However, she’s stepped back from performing on stage. During a live performance, another singer sings Bianca’s song on stage. Thompson’s terrific at showing just a flash of envy.

Bianca is the definition of selfless. All she wants for Adonis is to stop bottling up his emotions over his past. Adonis continues to keep Bianca at arm’s length. The relationship between Adonis and Bianca is the most compelling romance in the Rocky franchise.

Mary-Anne is another character who has sacrificed a lot for Adonis. In a heartbreaking scene, we get to see Mary-Anne’s love for Adonis and her feelings of betrayal over Apolloa’s affair pour out.

The final lesson about sacrifice comes from Adonis’s trainer Tony ‘Little Duke’ Burton (Wood Harris). When Damian comes around the gym, Little Duke makes it clear to Adonis that he doesn’t owe Damian anything. Adonis pushes forward by allowing Damian to train at the gym. After a rough sparring session between Damian and Felix, Little Duke insists Damian is telling Adonis exactly who he’s and what he’s about. Once Damian and Felix’s fight happens, Little Duke tells Adonis to stay away from the gym for a while. Little Duke standing up for his fighters is an instance of a character unwilling to risk his gym’s reputation, not even for Adonis.

Creed III final thoughts

Sacrifice, overcoming mental hurdles and epic fights that test limits are enduring themes of the Rocky franchise. With Creed III, Jordan has nailed these elements and closes out this trilogy of Creed films in a satisfying fashion.

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