“One step at a time, one punch at time, one round at a time.”

[WARNING: Minor spoilers ahead!]

The Creed Saga has gained an immense following after its first release in 2015, bringing a whole new generation into the Rocky Saga that started back in the 1970s. The Creed movies follow the journey of the son of Rocky Balboa's (Sylvester Stallone) toughest competitor and best friend Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) as he attempts to follow in his late father's hallowed footsteps as a world-cass boxer. This past week, the third movie in the series was finally released, starring actors Michael B. Jordan (Adonis Creed), Tessa Thompson (Bianca), Mila Davis-Kent (Amara) and Jonathan Majors (Damian). I am a huge fan of the series, so here’s what I thought of the recent release! 

Creed III, in which Jordan makes his feature directorial debut, has hit the world running as it centers on the relationship between Adonis and his old friend, Damian. One of the clever things about this movie is that it bounces back and forth between the past and the present. It draws lines between what happened with Damian and Adonis, creating a tension so fragile that it could snap. In the beginning moments of the movie, you don’t really know what happened between Damian and Adonis. Flashbacks of small moments start to outline a bigger picture that we don’t get to see until later on in the movie. All we know is, whatever happened affected both Adonis and Damian deeply, and they both still harbor feelings about it. We get introduced to a new fighter, Felix Chavez (Jose Benavidez Jr.), as well as Bianca and Adonis’s daughter, Amara. She grew up watching her dad, a fighter, so now it’s incredibly important to teach her that fighting isn’t just something physical, it’s also mental. If you aren’t ready in your mind, you’ll never be ready in the ring. 

So, the big question is: what is the overall message of the movie? What’s the impact? In my opinion, we see an overarching theme of the power of your mind. Our mind is our most powerful asset, but it can also be our greatest weakness. This, I’m sure, is something we can all agree on. When it comes to boxing, it’s about speed and agility, but it’s also about your headspace. You can’t fight the battles in your head and fight the battle in front of you. You have to be level-headed. As we get to know Damian a bit more, we come to understand that his dreams of becoming “the champ” continue to cloud his judgment. It’s okay to want the prize, but what if you fall before you achieve it? One thing that Adonis continuously tells his fighters is, “Use your head,” which means that you have to think before you act. There should always be careful calculations or else you’ll lose everything.

One of my favorite parts of the movie is when we get to see Adonis put this self-discipline in action. After a dangerous fight between Damian and Felix, Adonis finally confronts Damian about the real reason he’s in L.A. and fighting to become “the champ”. This is the moment where we see most of Adonis’s growth. Old Adonis would’ve fought immediately. If you’ve seen the first two movies, he struggled with having to prove himself to everyone. Being a Creed was great because of the legacy, but it was also a heavy burden to carry. He was always fighting to prove something. Fighting isn't just about throwing punches but also the reason behind it. Why are you fighting? In Creed II, Rocky would repeatedly say to Adonis, “Why do you want to fight?... When a fighter has nothing to lose, he’s dangerous.” 

So, in this moment with Damian and Adonis, they get into an argument, and Damian punches Adonis in the face. The normal reaction is to hit back, right? Because emotions are all riled up. But Adonis understands that Damian isn’t really fighting him, he’s fighting because he also has to prove himself. Right now? He has nothing to lose. He spent most of his life in jail and therefore had to give up on his dream. So now, he’s fighting to prove himself and it doesn’t matter who gets in the way... even if that person is Adonis. 

One lesson that I think we can all learn is that life gets tough. It’s not always easy to handle things, and we all fight our own battles everyday. But we should always make sure to ask ourselves, “Why am I fighting?” and to always have a clear head so that it’s easy to see the end goal.

Creed III is in theaters now and it is worth every second! Go check it out as soon as you can!