Michael B. Jordan, also making his directorial debut, stars in “Creed III,” the third outing in the never-ending “Rocky” saga.
If Ryan Coogler’s “Creed” injected some much-needed artful ambition into the “Rocky” franchise, the ensuing sequel (“Creed II”) felt like business as usual. “Creed III” is more of the latter, especially when it comes to the familiarity of the story being told.
After 18 years in the penitentiary, Damien (Jonathan Majors) gets out and tries to convince now-retired champ Adonis to give him a shot at the belt. Things get messy, bad blood is raised and, wouldn’t you know it, Adonis and Damien face off for the title belt in the climactic showdown.
Jonathan Majors is the main reason to watch this one. Majors finds the vulnerable aggressivity of his character, an ex-con who did time thanks to young Adonis Creed, to make this a barely watchable sequel.
The final showdown is as you’d expect. There’s nothing surprising, just an inevitable duel between the two lead characters. That’s the problem with “Creed III,” it feels recycled. It doesn’t help that there’s isn’t one bit of humor in it — Jordan plays it very straight. He’s dead-serious about it all.
As a director, Jordan has a lot to learn. This is very slick, but unfocused filmmaking on his part. It doesn’t help that the script, written by Keenan Coogler and Zach Baylin, is an exercise in contrivances and melodrama.
There are also clunky side characters: Adonis’ singer-turned-producer wife (Tessa Thompson), his dying Mama (Phylicia Rashad), his deaf pre-tween daughter (Mila Davis-Kent) and the wise trainer Little Duke (Wood Harris). They all amounts to nothing but airless drama.
All of the dramatic strings align too neatly by the end and people conspire to put these two men who used to be “like brothers” into the ring. You know the drill, the fight will go 12 rounds. [C+]