Studio: Warner Brothers
Release Date: May 23, 2023
Rating: PG-13
Film: 3/5
Plot After dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) has been thriving in both his career and family life. When a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian (Jonathan Majors), resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Adonis must put his future on the line to battle Damian – a fighter who has nothing to lose.
My ThoughtsI’m a big fan of the Rocky movies—except for the fifth one—and I was happy to see the franchise continue with the Creed movies. The first two were entertaining and took a fresh approach to the franchise that’s nearing fifty years old, so I eagerly anticipated seeing
Creed III. While it isn’t a bad film, I wouldn’t call it great either. It’s middling at best and somewhat boring to watch. It has is much more dramatic and heavier than the previous films and like most of the others, very predictable. My biggest gripe though is the soundtrack is uninspiring—something that
made the first Rocky film so entertaining.
The presentation is aa mixed bag. I found the HDR picture to be a tad dark and dim, but this is the second Warner movie in a row that has looked like this to me, and it may be time to pull out my calibration equipment and see if there’s something wonky going on with the gamma on my newish projector. The disc is encoded with HDR10+, so I’m thinking that it’s activating a picture mode that isn’t ideal, so I’ll need to dig into that. The audio is outstanding with the urban music tracks hitting with authority on the low-end, something I always enjoy.
One item of note—I ended up having to watch the last 20 minutes of the film on the Blu-ray because the UHD started to pixelate and freeze in my player. This is the first time this has ever happened to me and it makes me wonder if my player is starting to die or if there’s an issue with the disc. I looked around the Internet to see if anyone else had an issue and it seems to be just me. I’m hoping it’s just a bad pressing and not my player—time will tell.
Video 8/10 (AVC)
Audio 10/10 (Dolby Atmos)
Special Features: Blu-ray Disc Supplements
- Michael B. Jordan: IN the Ring / Behind the Camera
- There’s No Enemy Like the Past: Donnie and Dame
- Deleted Scenes
- 4K + Blu-ray + Digital Code
Conclusion This film doesn’t break any new ground for the long-running franchise, so if you’re a fan, be warned going in that it may be a bit of a disappointment to you. It’s the first film not to feature Stallone, who only produced the film, who supposedly had issues with the screenplay. After sitting through it, his concerns were validated. While not as horrific as
Rocky V, it won’t be on the rewatch list anytime soon. I’d rent it first before committing to a purchase.
Reference Review System: JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 110” 2.35:1 Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Kaleidescape Strato + Server
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
SVS SB3000
HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
M&K Sound X15+ Subwoofer
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner
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