Creed
Warner Brothers Pictures
Rated PG-13 for violence, profanity and sensuality
Rocky Franchise Revived With Character-Driven Spin-Off
When most people think of Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), what automatically comes to mind is the iconic image of a gutsy underdog easy to root for who held his own in the boxing ring against a variety of imposing adversaries. Each installment of the series has basically revolved around the hype leading to a riveting championship bout between a veritable David and Goliath.
Directed by Ryan Coogler, Creed is a worthy spin-off which not only pays homage to that tried-and-true formula but also represents a bit of departure for the beloved franchise. What’s new is the fact that this film devotes as much attention to character development as to ratcheting up the tension surrounding the fateful showdown.
The picture reunites Coogler with Michael B. Jordan, the star of his directorial debut, the critically-acclaimed Frutivale Station. Here, Jordan plays, Adonis Johnson, a juvenile delinquent who’s had his share of scrapes with the law, thanks to a quick temper and a tendency to settle differences with a pair of unusually powerful fists.
Just past the point of departure, the hot-headed orphan is informed by Apollo Creed’s (Carl Weathers) widow (Phylicia Rashad) that he is the illegitimate son of Rocky’s original archenemy. That at least explains the inclination to fight that’s ostensibly been baked into his DNA.
Fast-forward a few years, when Adonis has learned to channel his anger and explosive might via boxing. Over the objections of his adoptive mom (Mrs. Creed) he decides to follow in his father’s footsteps.
So, he moves from L.A. to Philly where he finds Rocky running a restaurant called Adrian’s. Adonis prevails upon the ex-champ to serve as his trainer. Rocky agrees on the condition the kid changes his surname to Creed, and the next thing you know the kid rises in the ranks to #1 contender and luckily lands a title fight with Pretty Ricky Conlan (Tony Bellow).
Meanwhile, Adonis falls in love with his next-door neighbor, Bianca (Tessa Thompson), an aspiring hip-hop artist on the verge of making it in her own right. Away from the gym, he spends some quality time with Rocky, too, offering a little heartfelt, if unsolicited advice that just might save his aging mentor’s life.
“Rocky” and the next Roman numeral might not be in the title, but this engaging and faithful seventh episode includes all the fixins to amount to a highly-recommended spin-off of the storied franchise.
Excellent (4 stars)
Running time: 95 minutes
Brooklyn
Fox Searchlight Pictures
Rated PG-13 for brief profanity and a sex scene
Homesick Immigrant Adjusts To U.S. In Bittersweet Romance Drama
Eilis (Saoirse Ronan) and Rose Lacey (Fiona Glascott) have stayed home for the sake of their widowed mom (Jane Brennan) who is still grieving the loss of their late father. The devoted daughters have had to put their dreams on hold, since job prospects aren’t great for young women without higher education in tiny Enniscorthy, County Wexford.
Although Eilis has exhibited an affinity for math, she had to settle for a part-time gig as a clerk at a grocery store where she’s under the thumb of a vindictive shrew (Brid Brennan). After all, this is the early ’50s, a time when any ambitious local lass would set her sights on America, a land of opportunity with a proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Salvation arrives in Father Flood (Jim Broadbent), a Catholic priest willing to sponsor Eilis’ emigration to the United States. She grudgingly agrees, aware that this means that the entire burden of caring for their mother will now fall on her sister’s shoulders. Nevertheless, after an exchange of tearful goodbyes, she boards the New York-bound steamship and descends to a bunk in steerage for what proves to be a seasickness-inducing voyage across a roiling ocean.
Awaiting Eilis in Brooklyn is a room in a female-only boardinghouse run by an eagle-eyed landlady (Julie Walters) obsessed with protecting the reputations of the gullible, young Irish immigrants placed under her supervision. The naive newcomer’s also handed a job at a department store, as well as tuition to study bookkeeping at college.
Despite being the beneficiary of so much good fortune, Eilis misses her mother and sister terribly. And she seriously considers repatriating, over the assurances of Father Flood that the feelings of homesickness will eventually pass.
Everything does change the night she meets handsome Tony Fiorello (Emory Cohen) at a dance. The two fall in love at first sight and embark on a whirlwind romance which finally enables Eilis to make the adjustment to life in the States.
But just when she’s ready to put down stakes on American soil, fate intervenes in the way of a tragedy that mandates her immediate return to the Emerald Isle. And wouldn’t you know it, that while back in Enniscorthy, Eilis finds herself pursued by a wealthy, eligible bachelor (Domnhall Gleason).
Which suitor will she choose? The answer to that question arrives at the moment of truth in Brooklyn, a touching historical drama directed by John Crowley (Closed Circuit). Based on Colm Toibin’s best seller of the same name, the film features an elegantly understated performance by Saoirse Ronan likely to land the 21-year-old ingenue her second Oscar nomination.
A poignant character study highlighting an American Dream delayed and then derailed. But will it ultimately be denied?
Excellent (4 stars)
Running time: 111 minutes
OPENING THIS WEEK
Kam’s Kapsules:
For movies opening November 27, 2015
The Good Dinosaur (PG for peril, action and mature themes) Animated adventure about an anthropomorphic apatosaurus (Raymond Ochoa) that is befriended by a caveboy (Jack Bright) after falling into a river and being swept far away from home. Voice cast includes Sam Elliott, Jeffrey Wright, Anna Paquin and Frances McDormand.
Victor Frankenstein (PG-13 for violence, macabre images and a scene of destruction) James McAvoy plays the title character in this variation on Mary Shelley’s classic tale about a mad scientist whose experiment in reviving the dead goes horribly wrong. Cast includes Daniel Radcliffe, Jessica Brown Findlay and Bronson Webb.
Bolshoi Babylon (Unrated) Russian gone postal documentary deconstructing the 2013 acid attack on Sergei Filin, the artistic director of Moscow’s most-prestigious ballet company, by a disgruntled employee.
The Danish Girl (R for sexuality and full-frontal nudity) Transgender biopic, set in Copenhagen in the ’20s, recounting the pioneering procedure undergone by Lili Elbe (Eddie Redmayne), one of the first recipients of a sex-change operation. With Alicia Vikander, Amber Heard and Matthias Schoenaerts.
Iraqi Odyssey (Unrated) Middle East documentary, directed by Samir Jamal al Din, finds the Iraqi expatriate tracing the migration of his people over the past half century in the wake of wars, dictatorship and foreign occupation. (In Arabic, English, German and Russian with subtitles)
Janis: Little Girl Blue (Unrated) Reverential retrospective chronicling the meteoric rise and untimely demise of Janis Joplin (1943-1970). Featuring interviews with record exec Clive Davis, filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker and singer/songwriter Kris Kristofferson.
Karski & The Lords Of Humanity (Unrated) Holocaust documentary recounting the exploits of Polish resistance leader Jan Karski (1914-2000) posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama in 2012 and credited with saving 200,000 Jews from the Nazis during World War II.
Stink! (Unrated) Eco-exposé about many dangerous chemicals politicians knowingly allow avaricious corporations to manufacture and disseminate in consumer products.
Submerged (Unrated) Harrowing thriller about a group of young party animals held for ransom when their stretch limo plunges into a canal after being forced off the road by kidnappers. Ensemble cast includes Mario Van Peebles, Rosa Salazar, Talulah Riley, Denzel Whitaker, Jonathan Bennett and Tim Daly.
