What I initially thought was nothing more than a cash grab using the Rocky moniker with the 2015 movie Creed, the Michael B. Jordan-led franchise has effectively carved out a niche in sports cinema. Dare I make the blasphemous claim that the first three Creed movies are better than the first three Rocky movies? I’m not willing to go that far, though I can confidently say that Creed III is much better than the cartoonish Rocky III, the weakest of the first four Rocky films.
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Creed II (2018)
Cash Grab II…I mean, Creed II is, perhaps, the most predictable movie of the year. Before we get into the movie specifics, let’s examine it from the standpoint of whether we needed it. The answer to that is a big, fat no. But even if we don’t need a movie, it doesn’t mean it won’t be good. And even though we know how a movie will end before seeing its opening credits, it is still worth viewing. It was a well-made movie, but, in the end, I wished I had devoted my two hours to a more unique film, even if I ended up not enjoying whatever that movie was nearly as much. Creed II was exactly the movie I thought it would be…not any better…not any worse. I wasn’t surprised by a single thing that I saw. I was tentative about the original Creed in 2015, but with originality in its cast, that movie was enjoyable and worthwhile. Creed II was enjoyable but didn’t offer anything new.
Annihilation (2018)
It took me two watches, some 12 months apart from one another, for me to be able to say emphatically that Alex Garland’s (Ex Machina) Annihilation isn’t a great movie. While I appreciate its ingenuity and ambition, the overall execution, delivery, and continuity could not be overlooked. For as much as I was in awe of Garland’s 2015 directorial debut, Ex Machina, I was even more disappointed with Annihilation, a movie for me that came and went as it felt, broke its own rules, left me bored at times, and hoping for more, while knowing it was never going quite to deliver. With a critics’ score of 88% but an audience score of just 66%, I am comfortable saying that, after watching it twice, some artistry I was missing made this movie so likable by those who review movies for a living. I couldn’t help but remove myself from critic mode and, even after taking off that hat, couldn’t get behind Annihilation to come close to recommending it.
Creed (2015)
The first question that a person might ask when deciding to see Ryan Coogler’s (Fruitvale Station) Creed could be, “Do I need to have seen all of the Rocky franchises to really like this movie?” The answer to that question is no, but I think you’ll definitely enjoy the movie if you are familiar with movies I through IV. There are lots of references to the relationship between Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed. While this movie is fine as a standalone, it, most likely, is much more fulfilling if you understand some of these references. Creed might be the surprise movie of 2015. I, for one, couldn’t believe what I saw when I first saw the preview. It certainly did not help my current belief that Hollywood is, and has been, for many years, void of original ideas. After seeing the preview, I tried to count the number of Rocky movies that shouldn’t have been made. The list was short. It included Rocky V and Balboa, but I was already willing to stick Creed with that group. While it’s not a great movie, it is a good movie. I think all of the potential Academy Award buzz with the movie is a little ridiculous (Indiewire currently has it as one of its 10 best movies of the year? Please). I will be honest that I’m a sucker for a good boxing movie. 2015 has two really good boxing movies. In addition to Creed, Southpaw, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, was one of the best movies of the summer and, at the moment, is still in my Top Ten for 2015. Younger audiences and big fans of the franchise should see Creed. However, if you are looking for a darker, more meaningful movie, I would definitely recommend watching Southpaw instead.
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