I’m skeptical of the seventh film in any series. Whether it’s Pirates of the Caribbean or Star Wars, I expect large franchises to run out of ideas and slowly decline in quality as they churn out sequel after sequel. Add to that the fact that I have little familiarity and zero emotion tied to the original Rocky series (there’s a chance I’ve been mixing it up with Raging Bull for years), and you’ll understand why I had low expectations for Creed. Unfamiliar with Ryan Coogler’s work, I assumed that it would be a by-the-numbers boxing movie that relied heavily on nostalgia and brought nothing new to the series. Instead, Coogler builds on Rocky‘s legacy while telling a powerful new story, pointing our attention to the struggle of a young man in another Philadelphia neighborhood.
From the first minutes of the film, Coogler roots Creed’s story in his search for an identity and a family. Growing up in the foster care system without a father, he’s alone and anchorless. Even when he’s given a stable home, he can’t rest in that security. Motivated by a relentless need to build his own legacy, he decides that his boxing skills are the way he’ll make his mark and abandons everything else to pursue that goal. He destroys his connections with trainers who don’t see his potential and moves to a new city to start with a clean slate.
Fully committed to his pursuit, Creed wants the best trainer around and enlists the help of an icon. Rocky left boxing behind years ago and has no interest in returning, but Creed slowly tugs him back into his old world. Michael B. Jordan carries this film, pairing an immense physicality with moments of stunning vulnerability, but his partnership with Sylvester Stallone gives the story its heart. Stallone returns to the Rocky identity with ease, as if this is who he’s truly been all these years, simply waiting for someone like Coogler to lift the mask. And as Creed and Rocky learn to work together, to push together toward the same goal, and to trust each other, it feels like Creed may have begun to find the family he’s been searching for.
As soon as Creed begins to trust this new relationship, though, the foundation he’s started to build crumbles beneath his feet. Rocky’s cancer diagnosis, and his refusal to fight for life, feel like a new abandonment. And when Rocky responds to pleas for him to get help with “We’re not a real family,” Creed’s world falls apart. Suddenly he’s back where we met him, throwing punches recklessly and finding himself alone, behind bars.
But, for the first time, Creed decides not to let the people he loves fade out of his life. Rocky is ready to give up, but Creed ties their success together, telling him, “If I fight, you fight.” Watching Creed grow stronger and faster in the film’s early training montage was exhilarating, but it’s better to watch him now as he races up hospital stairs and shadowboxes around the nurse in Rocky’s room. This fight means more, and we watch the two of them learn to lean on each other to find the strength they need.
After facing cancer together, Creed and Rocky seem like an unstoppable team as they head for the climactic fight. We’re rooting for Creed to win the match, of course, but Coogler helps us realize that there are more important victories to be had. In one of my favorite moments of the film, we see Creed embrace the new family he’s found. Rocky tells Creed that he loves him, and, for the first time, that iconic theme plays. It gives me chills and, even when I’m sitting in a Starbucks and watching the movie on my phone, never fails to bring tears to my eyes.