Creed 2’s Russian Dinner Scene Turned Ivan Drago Into A Human Being
Creed 2 featured the return of Dolph Lundgren’s hulking Ivan Drago but the movie’s key Russian dinner scene transformed him into a human being.
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Creed 2’s Russian dinner scene helped turned stoic Rocky IV villain Ivan Drago into a fleshed-out human being. The original Rocky may have spawned five sequels and two spinoffs, but it wasn’t planned that way. Like the title character, the first film was an underdog that made good, becoming a surprise Oscar-winning success in 1976. Following the underperformance of his follow-up projects, Sylvester Stallone himself stepped behind the camera to direct Rocky II, and while each sequel ended with the implication that was Rocky would retire, he always came back for more.
After Stallone redeemed the franchise’s reputation with belated 2006 sequel Rocky Balboa – following the disappointment of 1990’s Rocky V – that seemed to be that for the series. That’s until Stallone was lured back for 2015 spinoff Creed from director Ryan Coogler. This focused on Rocky training Michael B. Jordan’s Adonis Creed – the son of his late rival turned best friend Apollo (Carl Weathers). Creed turned out to be one of the best entries in the entire series, fronted by excellent performances and heartfelt drama.
Creed also did the impossible by somewhat grounding the events of 1985’s cartoonish Rocky IV. That sequel saw Apollo Creed killed in the ring by Russian boxer Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren), with Rocky later facing the Russian giant for revenge. Drago himself became an iconic movie figure and made Lundgren a movie star, but the monosyllabic boxer was more of a walking symbol of the Soviet Union than a person. That’s why some considered it a risk when it was announced Ivan Drago was returning for Creed 2, which saw his son Viktor fighting Adonis.
Creed 2 does much to humanize Ivan Drago, establishing that after he was defeated by Rocky he was outcast, with his wife Ludmilla (Brigitte Nielsen) leaving him to raise their son Viktor on his own. Drago raised his son in Ukraine and they lived a tough life as he trained Viktor to be a fighter. While he’s no longer the larger than life cartoon of Rocky IV, Drago is still presented in somewhat villainous terms, with his reunion scene with Rocky seeing him blame the boxer for ruining his life and that Viktor will “break” Adonis when they fight. That perception changes around the midway point, where Viktor beats Adonis and Ivan and Viktor are later invited to dinner with some Russian elites to celebrate.
Creed 2’s Russian dinner scene sees them both look out of place, with Ivan in an ill-fitting suit and Viktor holding back barely concealed contempt for the people who cast his father aside. That’s when Ludmilla makes an unexpected appearance, shocking them both. Ivan is clearly heartbroken while Viktor storms out, leading the two to argue. This makes it clear that Ivan wants to regain his former honor after decades of shame and while he’s using his son to get there, he also trusts him to win the victory he never could. This arc comes full circle during the final bout between Viktor and Adonis, where Ludmilla walks out when it becomes clear her son will lose.
Both Viktor and Ivan are crushed by this, but taking his father’s lessons to heart, Viktor refuses to be knocked down. Fearing for his safety, Ivan throws in the towel, proving he ultimately cares more for his child than his reputation. Creed 2 helped take Ivan Drago from a stereotype into an actual character and proved Dolph Lundgren is more than capable of delivering a great performance with the right material.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/creed-2-movie-russian-dinner-scene-ivan-drago/