<em>Creed III</em> and the Power of a Worthy Opponent
Michael B. Jordan’s directorial debut gives new energy to old sports-movie formulas.
Nobody in has much to say about Rocky Balboa. For the first two films in the series, the aged mentor (played by Sylvester Stallone) of the boxing star Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) is an important figure in the narrative, a folksy sage passing down the lessons of an entire movie franchise. In , he’s nowhere to be seen and basically forgotten. That’s partly because of Stallone had about the creative direction, but his character’s absence also feels like a necessary, liberating step, allowing to shake off the tricky
