Creed III Review

Photo Credit - MGM Studios

The Creed series is near the top of the list of legacy sequels. It’s part homage to one of the best fictional and real-life underdog stories via Sylvester Stallone. It’s also part new beginning with a then-still under-the-radar Ryan Coogler and rising star Michael B. Jordan coming aboard. Together, they stoked the memories of OG fans, piqued the interest of new ones, and gave the studio the critical and box office results needed to continue the story.

Creed III is the latest entry in the Adonis Creed saga. It finds a retired Adonis enjoying post-fighting success until Damien (played by Jonathan Majors), a figure from his past, threatens to destroy it. It’s a straightforward plot, but two real-life developments raise the stakes. First, the film is Jordan’s directorial debut. Second, Creed III is the first Rocky-related project not to directly involve Stallone.

That turn of events creates a make or break situation for Jordan. With the weight of the franchise on his back, does Jordan have what it takes to keep the Creed series moving forward? Like the GOAT of basketball and sneakers with whom he shares a name, Jordan may have a knack for being at his best under pressure.

On the screen, Jordan is still nowhere close to the expectations many had for him after his breakout performance in 2013’s Fruitvale Station. Contrary to social media, he’s not a bad actor but more so a flawed one. Yet, he’s always solid in the Adonis Creed role, and Creed III is no exception but a little different.

This time, Jordan is a more expressive actor. Throughout his career, Jordan tended to be monotone in his films' tensest or most profound scenes. In Creed III, he shows marked improvement in that area. Jordan exhibits a newfound depth that proves effective and believable as the film focuses on the darker and emotional aspects of the Adonis character.

That depth peaks when Jordan shares scenes with Majors. You expect him to be overmatched, but he is so much more nuanced and confident in those scenes that he still shines amid Majors's presence.

Speaking of Majors, he delivers yet another outstanding performance. He doesn’t play Damien as simply the villain of Creed III, but as someone whose pain you understand. The character is a seesaw of victim and menace, and Majors’s combination of vulnerability and bravado perfectly exhibits it.

Behind the camera is where Jordan and Creed III are most impressive because it keeps the spirits of Rocky and Creed films while finding ways to stand on its own. Brothers Keenan and Ryan Coogler and Oscar nominee Zach Baylin craft a story that intently focuses on its main characters' journeys away from the ring.

Going the character-driven route is a plus because it opens the door for relevant issues such as prison and juvenile justice system failures, trauma, and survivor’s remorse to be introduced. It's new territory for the franchise, but it has a human touch only present in the first Rocky and Creed films.

Jordan's direction is the main reason the pivot from a boxing focal point works so well. He moves the film in a way that allows the deeper parts of the story to develop without ever stalling.

His crowning achievement from the director’s chair is how he shot the fight scenes in the movie. In those scenes, Jordan injects his love of anime and has spectacular results.

Slow motion to emphasize a punch’s power, the fighters’ physical reactions, and the close-ups of the fighter’s eyes to give a window into their psyche are standard anime fare he uses well. Part of the final fight leans into that influence too much, but Jordan’s refreshing approach is appreciated otherwise.

Jordan has points where his directing inexperience shows. There’s a significant scene in the second act that lacks much-needed contrition. There’s also a rush to the film’s climax that wasn’t necessary since the film’s runtime is just under 2 hours, but the fact this was a strong first effort remains unchanged.

In the GOAT’s case, it led to him bouncing back from an injury-shortened season for arguably the greatest single-game playoff performance in the history of the NBA. For the other Jordan, that meant refining his main craft while taking on more responsibilities and showing untapped potential in a more demanding space to make Creed III catapult instead of a pitfall.

Creed III tells a different story than any of the previous Rocky and Creed films and faced a tall task moving forward without the icon who built its world from scratch. However, thanks to Jordan pulling off double duty with a veteran’s savvy, a well-written script, and Majors continuing his astonishing run, the Creed team proved there is life without Rocky.