There’s a brief scene midway through Creed 2 which explains in a poetic manner why Sylvester Stallone has jumped into the ring of the Rocky franchise for a staggering eighth time. Exiting his home alone pad in Philadelphia, he shakes his head in frustration at a broken streetlamp and in his distinctive drawl philosophises to Adonis Creed on what is the point of having a light if you’re not going to let it shine.

With Steven Caple Jr. taking over the directorial reins from Ryan Coogler due to scheduling conflicts with Black Panther, and Juel Taylor teaming up with Stallone to pen the screenplay (Creed was the first movie in the series which Sly didn’t write), the light of the latest instalment may not be as blinding as the original or its most recent prequel, but it still shines bright.

With the exception of Dolph Lundgren returning as Ivan Drago and a cameo by Brigitte Nielsen as his ex-wife Ludmila, there are few surprises. Indeed, the stock characters and action sequences including the obligatory training regime to a rousing score once again orchestrated by Ludwig Göransson are efficiently if not electrifyingly ticked off the list. But the humour and heart which has made the franchise such a success, together with a star turn by Stallone whose subtle performance oozes wit and wisdom and likeability, ensures that there’s life in the old dog yet.

And it is the life of his newborn daughter Amara and his love for his singer-songwriter fiance Bianca (Tessa Thompson) that drives Creed to rediscover his mojo following a bruising world title fight against Ivan Drago’s powerhouse of a son Viktor (Romanian boxer Florian “Big Nasty” Munteanu) which resulted in the latter being disqualified and the former in intensive care with broken ribs and a ruptured kidney – and worse, a bruised ego.

Is Creed 2 vital or necessary? No, however the narrative shift from Rocky to Creed makes it much more current. A move echoed in the soundtrack which includes collaborations with Pharrell Williams and Kendrick Lamar. Though a few fleeting bars of Bill Conti’s original theme stand out from the crowd and continue to pluck the nostalgic heartstrings. But, more importantly, is Creed II enjoyable? To paraphrase a French Obama: Yes, Oui, Man!

Director: Steven Caple Jr.
Writers: Cheo Hodari Coker (story by), Ryan Coogler (characters)
Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson
Peter Callaghan
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