Who among us can possibly deny the absolute fun and mayhem that was the 1980?s? Likewise, the decade which preceded the age of MTV gave us disco, eight tracks, Star Wars and for the purposes of this brief article, the first two installments of the Rocky saga. Much of the narrative in the first two films is of course centered around the protagonist in hometown hero Rocky Balboa and the antagonist in heavyweight champion Apollo Creed. As we know, Rocky eventually won the world title in a fashion we don?t see in real life boxing, but it?s nevertheless memorable to no end, especially when he exclaims, ?Yo Adrian! I did it!? Rocky III dropped in 1982 and it?s the favorite chapter of many boxing fans, this writer included. Apollo Creed was a motormouth, but Clubber Lang was mean.
Still, not many of us had a more hated villain, save for perhaps Darth Vader, than Ivan Drago. Rocky IV was released in time for the holiday season of 1985. Despite the fact that Rocky eventually humbles the ?Siberian Bull? by late knockout in a locale which no longer exists, the Soviet Union, we could never forgive Drago for mercilessly killing Apollo Creed in the ring. Rocky V was forgettable and at the same time sad, as it was the first time many of caught a glimpse of Tommy Morrison, who captured the WBO world heavyweight championship in 1993 but tragically died ten years later from complications of H.I.V. There would be one more installment of the Rocky franchise in 2006, which was of course Rocky Balboa.
Three years ago, the side story of Apollo?s son (or love child) Adonis hit cinemas. 2015?s Creed was well received by audiences and did its best to inject more realism into its scenes, something which the majority of boxing movies don?t have. The preceding Rocky movies were no exception, especially the aforementioned part IV, which was likely fifty percent montage scenery and thorough use of the film?s soundtrack. Creed included several actual boxers such as Andre Ward, Tony Bellew and Gabe Rosado. Rocky agrees to train ?Donnie? (Michael B. Jordan) and the film ends with Creed?s valiant attempt to wrest control of the light heavyweight championship from ?Pretty? Ricky Conlan (Bellew), but he falls short.
Apologies for the long-winded approach, but as a kid from the seventies and eighties, this journalist feels any delving into the Rocky universe deserves at least a brief homage to the films which set the table. There?s a reason why Sylvester Stallone is a member of the Boxing Hall of Fame.
Creed II officially hits cinemas on Wednesday, although some moviegoers took in special early screenings on Tuesday evening. The film picks up a few years on from where the previous one ended. Without giving much away and avoiding any need to caution readers from proceeding at risk of ingesting a much hated basket full of spoilers, here is a quick review and not a synopsis.
The meat and gristle of Creed II, as its preceding trailers have given us, is the new rivalry between Adonis Creed and Viktor Drago (played frighteningly well by newcomer Florian Munteanu), the son of Ivan, who of course beat Apollo to death way back in 1985. As we saw in the first Creed movie, the familiar faces of HBO?s Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman are in the new movie, which is a fitting swan song of sorts. As we know, HBO has left boxing once and for all, effective at year?s end.
In an early scene, Ivan Drago is waiting inside Rocky?s restaurant to speak to the man who knocked him out on Christmas Day in 1985. He tells Rocky about how his life was basically ruined after his defeat thirty three years ago, but that he has a son who knows nothing but fighting. The stage is thereby set. What ensues over the course of the film, in the case of Dolph Lundgren?s character, is quite amusing, and it?s not just because he has a bit more speaking parts than the perhaps six lines of dialog (all quite famous in their own right) we saw back in the mid eighties. Creed II has its moments, to be sure and works hard in parts to keep the story interesting because the bulk of the characters aren?t new. It has its fair share of what makes it a Rocky movie, complete with state of the art cinematography and bumpin? tunes.
Many of us were introduced to boxing thanks in large part to a Rocky movie. To take this one step further, a handful may have decided to try the sport of boxing because we watched ?The Italian Stallion? on a screen of some sort. Creed II is perhaps getting positive reviews because it sticks to the formula. Fighting, drama, conflict, family and finally resolution of some kind. The order?s not important. It does enough to put fight fans in a state of entertainment, provided no excessive nitpicking is done. Check it out this weekend. It?s a fun few hours.
