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Parents' Guide to

Creed

By S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Feel-good Black-led film continues Rocky saga; has violence.

Movie PG-13 2015 95 minutes
Creed Movie Poster Image: Creed and Rocky in the ring

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 12+

Based on 11 parent reviews

age 11+

Creed is a Solid Story in Starting a New Legacy and Continuing an Old One!

For not being a big boxing fan in general and not into these kind of sport movies, this one captivated my interest kind of from the beginning! I wanted to see Creed III in theaters this weekend, but I knew I couldn’t just hop into that movie without seeing the other Creed movies. I could have started from the very beginning of it with the Rocky series and work my way up, but to be honest, there’s too many Rocky movies to tackle I thought I would rather watch the two Creed movies. Although I didn’t know Rocky’s past very well, I somehow got the gist of his life (also, I read some of the plots for the movie), and I liked how in this movie Rocky still had thinking of the past, and to an extent, haunted by it. I feel like when he took on Adonis, it first felt like it was more like out of duty for his long, lost friend than what he actually wanted. But then throughout the movie, Rocky comes to terms that Adonis has potential and he’s going to train him not out of duty but out of . . . I guess you could say out of love. It doesn’t feel like a chore anymore for Rocky but more of an honor to train his long, lost friend’s son! Another great part of this movie is now Adonis doesn’t want to take on his original last name of Creed. I love how he doesn’t want to because he doesn’t want to dishonor his father’s last name, Creed. But throughout the movie you see that Adonis learns that it isn’t the last name that makes someone great, it’s just you. Adonis realizes that he can take on his father’s last name of Creed with honor, but yet be the boxer not under his father’s name but under his own! I really loved how this movie reflects on the hardship Adonis and Rocky had. You know, it if was all perfect, it would have felt more forced if a movie. But Ryan Coogler knows how to tell a good story with added pains to it. He knows how to balance them out, and not feel like it’s one pity story but yet not feel like one big hurrah movie! We get to see both Adonis and Rocky go through their own hardship whether that’s still struggling with the past or not wanting to ruin a legacy (last name). It’s a beautiful touch this already well-made boxing film! I feel like this movie was drawn out. In more than one scene it lost my interest, and I felt like there were some unnecessary moments to could have been cut out. I mean, yes, plenty of things added to the final moment and the story/character arc, but without a doubt it felt slow and even boring at times. It felt a bit longer than it needed it to be. It overall, cut that out and we get a beautiful boxing film about the Creed legacy. This movie uses about the same formula from the first Rocky film, but yet Ryan Coogler knew how to keep true to the sticky legacy while adding it’s own style it it. I mean, like I said: I’ve never seen any of the Rocky movies (I plan to though), but this just gives me the Rocky vibes. Without a doubt, it’s has a lot of familiar themes from the Rocky movies, and so if I liked this one (which I did more than I was expecting), then I’m sure most of the Rocky movies are going to be fun to sit down and watch. A beautiful, somewhat underdog story is told through not only the hurrahs of it but tue pains of it. It knows how to deliver a drama movie that never loses track of the real purpose it was made. It’s a movie sure I could see myself watch in the near time future, but it’s one that I need to digest on everything I saw. It’s delivers strong themes, storylines, and above all: beautifully written story arcs for Adonis and Rocky!

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much swearing
age 10+

Amazing!

This movie is action packed and amazing. There is blood and some kissing but otherwise this movie is really good. It might scare young children but if your child is mature enough I highly recommend watching it

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (11 ):
Kids say (34 ):

This movie has elements that are terrific, no question, but it disappoints, too. Still, it's well worth seeing, if only to witness how Rocky's cinematic and boxing legacy continues. First, the good stuff: Decades after the first Rocky hit the big screen, the pull of the franchise endures. When Stallone makes his first appearance, it's hard not to root for him. We've known this character for years, and there's something fundamentally appealing about him.

Adonis, meanwhile, is much more complicated -- though perhaps not as complicated as he deserves. We don't get to know him as deeply as we did Rocky, and therefore we aren't as invested in him as we should be. He comes alive when he's in the ring, as the star of a Rocky movie should (though nostalgia buffs might wish they'd hear more of the iconic theme song), thanks to fight choreography that taps into both the balletic and brutal elements of the punishing sport. But Adonis also needs to be compelling away from the ropes. A hero's journey deserves a hero who's mesmerizing; through no fault of the talented Jordan, Adonis still stands in the shadow of Rocky Balboa.

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