OK so I finally went and saw Creed III last night and have some thoughts. First of all, despite the nits I am about to pick, I enjoyed the movie and will definitely watch it again. That being said, there were some major flaws that had me laughing throughout the movie.
1. Let's start with how jacked up the timeline continues to be in this series and how it continually shifts. So we flash back to 2002 when we are supposed to assume Adonis is a young teenager. Apollo died in 1985 which would make him 17 at the youngest. A minor nitpick until we then jump 15 years to 2017 where Creed has then had a full career and retires before Creed II is even made.
We then jump to present day where his daughter is 5-6 years old yet they say he has been retired from boxing for 3 years. It's just a jumbled mess.
2. I know they are moving on from Rocky, but not even a passing mention of him the entire film? Despite all that Creed goes through in the movie, we are supposed to believe that Rocky has just completely vanished from his life? They couldn't even throw in some lame excuse to address why he is suddenly non-existent?
3. They couldn't come up with a better "Heavyweight" champ than Jose Benavidez? We are supposed to believe that a guy that weighs 160 pounds soaking wet is the Heavyweight Champ? And they said his record was like 15-1? How the hell did he become champ?
4. The premise of Dame getting a shot at the title for his 1st professional bout is comical. I know they have to make a movie, but they couldn't get this guy at least a couple of fights to make it remotely plausible for him to get a title shot? "Hey I know this guy hasn't had a single fight at any level for 20 years, but let's give him a shot at the title!"
5. During the title fight with Chavez, he basically fouls the entire fight and gets away with it. He would never be allowed to do what he did in that fight. Oh and his ridiculously long, looping punches were awful. Any decent pro would easily dispatch a guy who throws punches like that.
6. So Dame is now champ with one fight under his belt and suddenly Creed is an underdog. During the ring walk, the announcers say due to Creed's ring rust from 3 years off, Dame could end it quickly. The guy has fought like 2 rounds in 20 years and we are worried about Creed's ring rust?
7. I know they said Dame had "some priors", but he gets 18 years for pointing a gun at someone? Ok
The whole movie is patently absurd, and I will definitely watch it again.