By Tyler Chavez – Staff Reporter

The first “Rocky” film came out 39 years ago. Since then, five additional films have helped establish the film franchise as one of the most beloved in American cinema. The story of a young boxer from Philadelphia established the modern underdog story in film, and launched Sylvester Stallone to stardom for the rest of his career. Enter “Creed”, the newest installment in the franchise (the first since 2006’s “Rocky Balboa”), that attempts to not only live up to the expectations of the first “Rocky” films, but also stand as its own great film. Starring Michael B. Jordan (“Chronicle”, “Fantastic Four”, “Fruitvale Station”), Sylvester Stallone (“The Expendables”, “Rambo”, “Spy-Kids 3D: Game Over”), and directed by Ryan Coogler (“Fruitvale Station”), “Creed” sets out to tell an underdog story we know very well by now, but also to make its mark on the “Rocky” franchise.

The film starts with Mary Anne Creed (played by Phylicia Rashad), the widow of champion Apollo Creed from the first three Rocky films, adopting a young Adonis Johnson, Apollo’s illegitimate son. Years later, we see Adonis (Michael B. Jordan) grown up, and boxing in Mexico, just like his father. But Adonis wants to pursue boxing full time, and decides to move from California, to Philadelphia to train under the great Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone). While hesitant at first, Balboa agrees to train Adonis, after the young boxer reveals that he is Apollo’s son.

Michael B. Jordan, while not fantastic, does a very good job as Adonis. In almost every scene, you can see the hunger and desire he has to be great and achieve his goal. He also does a very good job of capturing how haunted Adonis is by his father. Even though he never met Apollo, he has resentment of him, and has to live with the comparisons to his father. This is a young man who is hurting, but will never admit it. This movie is a good move for Michael B. Jordan seeing as his last film, Fantastic Four, failed spectacularly at the box office.

However, Stallone really steals the show. His Rocky is older, alone, and weaker. He is not pathetic, but it is still sad to see him like this. Rocky is now more of a local legend, living quietly and running an Italian restaurant. However, Rocky still has a heart of gold. His comedic comments bring life into the film. The classic “old master becomes teacher” arc is handled perfectly, and the relationship between Rocky and Adonis is great. They both help each other in their own ways. I fully expect Stallone to get a couple award nominations for this performance.

The cinematography is also handled very well in this movie. Primarily during the boxing fights, the use of circling shots, and rising sound with every punch builds intensity and sets the atmosphere perfectly. Seeing these punches land hurts and adds a visual intensity that any boxing film needs.

Even though Michael B. Jordan does a good job as Adonis, Adonis himself can be a hard character to root for. It is not impossible to root for Adonis and he is not totally unlikeable since he does get some good character development later on, but he doesn’t truly admit his flaws or see the error of his ways and his pride and over-masculinity often get him into trouble.

Many of his opponents say the same thing, that he was born with a silver spoon and is not a proven fighter. And, well, they’re right. Adonis comes from money because of Apollo, and left his financially secure job where he was just promoted to chase some ego-fueled dream. And we only see him fight twice before he is asked to fight the pound-for-pound best boxer in the world. The entire idea of him suddenly being ready to take on this opponent is unrealistic. Instead of showing us Adonis working up through the boxing world, we only get some good old fashioned training montages.

Adonis is not the only character to weigh this movie down. The film’s main female lead and Adonis’ love interest, Bianca (played by Tessa Thompson of Selma and Dear White People) and the film’s antagonist, Ricky Conlan (played by actual boxer Tony Bellew) are given the short hand of the stick. What could be good, interesting characters are left unattended to and underdeveloped.

Bianca, unfortunately, is treated like many other love interests in boxing films. She is left to just stay by Adonis’ side and support him, which is a shame because she has the potential to be a good character. Bianca is an aspiring singer/musician who also has progressive hearing loss. Instead of touching on this story of a musician who is losing her hearing, the detail is tossed to the side. In fact, we learn very little about Bianca in the film as a whole. She is underdeveloped, and that lets the film down.

Ricky Conlan gets a similar treatment. The best pound-for-pound boxer in the world is about to go to jail for seven years, and wants one last fight with the son of Apollo before he leaves. But, he is not a total bad guy. He is not doing this for his ego, but instead, is trying to leave a roof for his kids to stay under. And yet, we see little of this, or Conlan at all. He is respectable and a decent guy, but as a character, he too is left underdeveloped and unappreciated.

In a way, the story of Adonis represents what “Creed” is all about. Both are trying to step out of the shadow of their predecessors, and prove that they can stand on their own as greats. They are not relying on their connections, but accept them to strengthen themselves and be better. Fans of the first “Rocky” film will enjoy this, as “Creed” follows a similar path, and seeing Stallone reprise his role as Rocky will warm their hearts. And to those who did not see the previous entries, they will find a well- written, well directed, uplifting underdog story. “Creed” accomplishes what it set out to do, and is a great film that may see some award nominations.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars