Directed by: Steven Caple, Jr.
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad, Florian Munteanu, Wood Harris
I'm sure just as night follows day that there will be a Creed III, with another son of a fighter from Rocky Balboa's past itching to avenge his father's defeat from thirty-plus years ago. Adonis Creed (Jordan) apparently doesn't have any other heavyweight contenders to fight. The division just sits around waiting for the Viktor Dragos of the world to rear their ugly heads. But, I am through fighting the fact that any Creed movie will ostensibly be a Rocky movie for the younger generations. There is nothing that Adonis Creed doesn't go through in Creed II that Rocky didn't experience in the Rocky films. These movies are what they are. I can roll my eyes at the potential Clubber Lang, Jr.-Adonis Creed match in Creed III, but it's coming and I can't do anything about it. If you recall in Rocky III, Clubber disses Apollo Creed when he tried to shake hands with him before the first Rocky/Clubber brawl. So, Adonis will have to avenge that.
With all of that being said, Creed II is a serviceable sequel to 2015's Creed, which saw the rise of Adonis Creed, son of Rocky's formidable foe turned buddy who was killed in the ring by Soviet monster Ivan Drago (Lundgren) in 1985's Rocky IV. Now, years later, Creed wins the heavyweight title and is soon challenged by Ivan Drago's monstrous son Viktor (Munteanu), who ferociously knocks opponents out much like his old man did. Creed takes the fight, knowing that Ivan killed his father in the ring, although Adonis would've been maybe a few months old (if that) at the time of his sperm donor's death. Creed's trainer Rocky (Stallone) is afraid of history repeating itself and dredging up old regrets and demons. He chooses not to train Adonis for the fight, and Adonis gets his butt kicked, but manages to keep the title through a disqualification. But, nonetheless, his body and spirit are shattered, and his fiancee Bianca (Thompson) is now pregnant, so Adonis needs to figure out if stepping back into the ring with Viktor is a wise move.
Creed II kills time until its inevitable finale, which like Rocky's fight with Ivan Drago takes place in Russia and if I were the Dragos, I would not fight within 1000 kilometers of Russia. They do better on American soil. The primary issue with Creed II, and its predecessor, is that Adonis doesn't have the personality or the charisma to keep us engrossed. He's something of a dud, and the peripheral characters like the wise, aging Rocky, the down-on-his luck Ivan, and even Adonis' adoptive mother Mary Anne (Rashad) deserve more screen time. They are just plain more entertaining to watch. I would've liked to have seen Viktor's relationship with his dad fleshed out more. Just how does he feel about being Ivan's pawn in his attempt to regain the respect of the Russian powers that be vicariously through his son? Creed II seems to forget that the Ukraine and Russia are no longer part of the same country.
As the wiser, older, and slower Rocky Balboa, Stallone hits the right notes. This version of Rocky suits him considering that Stallone is now 72. Just please don't let Rocky back in the ring. Lundgren himself hints at his own inner torment during his heart-to-heart with Rocky, and I would've preferred to see Ivan and son presented as more than just mere one-dimensional villains for Adonis and Rocky to crush. We know Ivan has fallen on hard times since his loss to Rocky thirty-plus years ago, and there is ample opportunity to show us how and why. Viktor is not given much dialogue, and thus isn't allowed to anything but a Ukrainian wrecking machine. There is a story here Creed II isn't into focusing on.
Jordan looks the part of a boxer and can authentically move around the ring, but as a character he's dull. But, since the movie is titled Creed II and not Drago I, or Rocky VIII, the movie has to be about him. I watched the movie in a Dolby surround sound theater, and the body blows and head shots deliver some wicked thuds. The fight scenes are well-done, and manage to remain somewhat convincing even for a Rocky film, and they all reach surprising conclusions. But, I remain staunch in my belief that we don't need to see any more Rocky Balboa or Adonis Creed. There isn't any direction which can be taken that hasn't already been covered. But, if you're going to end the series at some point, at least do so before Mason "The Line" Dixon's son decides he wants to box for a living.
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