CREED 3: ACTORS TURNED DIRECTOR
Michael B. Jordan's directorial debut is a one-hit KO
I watched Creed 3 last week, a movie which not only had me shadow-boxing for the next several days non-stop, but also opened my eyes to just how big of a Hollywood star Michael B. Jordan will become. He’s already one of Hollywood’s biggest stars today, with notches in his belt including supervillain phenoms like Killmonger in Black Panther, to harrowing dramatic roles like Bryan Stevenson in Just Mercy. He has the range, the charisma, the star-power, and everything in between to become one of Hollywood’s leading men.
But like many actors before him, he’s taking it a step further, venturing into work as a director. Creed 3 was his directorial debut, and it certainly makes a splash. Michael B. Jordan is just as talented behind the camera as he is in front of it. Creed 3 stands out as one of the best sports movies I’ve seen in a while because he tries something new. He makes this boxing movie, which could otherwise have been a tired re-scrambling of the dozens that have come before it, something uniquely his own.
Anime
The best directors draw from their own inspirations to make something transcendent – MBJ drew specifically from his love of Japanese anime to craft Creed 3. Even as someone who hasn’t seen much anime, I could feel how Creed 3 was different from its predecessors. A lot of this boils down to visual style. There are countless references (that I only got after the fact) to famed anime like Naruto, Dragon Ball Z, Akira, and others.
It all culminates in fights that are larger than life, the way animation is perfectly suited to capture. The boxing scenes here alone are unlike anything I’d seen before – they embrace the grandiose nature of these blockbuster showdowns, taking it to a whole new extreme.
Beyond the Punches
And that’s supported by strong character arcs throughout, which amplify every punch on screen. In one interview, MBJ discussed how big fights in Anime often occur at two levels – the physical and the emotional/mental. He certainly conveys that here, with his own titular character bogged down in a battle against a demon from his own past (Johnathan Majors). Far more important than punches is the mental wrestling between the two
In all, it’s an awesome movie. More than that, though, it’s exciting to see a talented actor like Michael B. Jordan extend his craft even further. In doing so, he joins the echelons of actors-turned-directors that came before him. Ben Affleck’s third stint as director landed him a Best Picture (Argo). Clint Eastwood has the highest accolades on all sides of his creative work. Same with actresses like Regina King and Greta Gerwig. I look at examples like these and all I can think is that the sky's the limit for MBJ.
See you all again next week. Until then, please get in touch if you have any thoughts or suggestions you’d like to share. If you want to keep up with what I’m watching, follow me on Letterboxd @atharv_gupta.