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Formula 51 | Classification: Action/Adventure Actors/Actresses: - Samuel L. Jackson - Emily Mortimer - Robert Carlyle The King of Cool Returns! (In A Kilt!) I have a few hard-and-fast movie viewing rules, and one that's NEVER let me down is this: Any movie with Samuel L. Jackson is worth seeing. Formula 51 is no exception. Mr. Jackson (The coolest cat in movies today) plays Elmo McElroy, a Pharmacological genius who has been trapped in a state of indentured servitude for 30 years, toiling away making designer drugs for sleazebag drug-kingpin The Lizard (Played by the extra-crispy Meat Loaf). He's created a perfectly legal drug, (Made from ordinary household objects) which he calls POS-51, supposedly 51 times more potent than Heroin and Cocaine. After breaking loose from The Lizard, Elmo makes his way to Liverpool to sell the formula on his own, and finally start living the good life. Unfortunately, The Lizard has sent assassin Dawn/Dakota (The adorable Emily Mortimer) after him; First to kill him, later to keep him safe until he can coerce him into giving up the formula. THEN kill him.... The film plays like a hybrid of Quentin Tarentino, Monty Python, and Hong Kong action flicks, with a distinctly British flavor injected into it by actors Ricky Tomlinson, Robert Carlysle, and Rhys Ifans, all of whom are excellent. Director Ronny Yu is comfortable mixing genres, as shown by the fast-paced action scenes and the laugh-out-loud comedy. I'll never forget the scene in the lab with the skinheads.....Jackson, is, of course, excellent. I haven't had this much fun at the movies in a LONG time; Can't wait for the DVD! Formulaic 51 A movie that never lives up to its potential, FORMULA 51 seems more like an exercise in filmaking or B-Movie than a major release. People might be looking for a PULP FICTION or a SNATCH here, but it is not quite on the same level. It's more on the level of Mark Wahlberg's 1998 cult action film THE BIG HIT and to no surprise, both films are by directors from the Hong Kong film industry (Ronny Yu and Kirk Wong respectively). What saves the film is the casting of international stars with the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Meatloaf, and Robert Carlyle with their outrageous characters. They are in a story about an American (Jackson) who has invented the ultimate drug in hopes to sell the formula to make a final score. He travels to Liverpool, England to meet with mobsters in hopes it will become the next fashion drug at 'party raves'. The dialogue is fast and crisp, the action and gunplay are graphic and bloody, and there is the right amount of comedy mixed in with the violence with some plot twists and turns to keep the film moving. There are some plot holes and predictable plot devices and if the film went beyond the right amount of 92 minutes, the audience would have had enough of all the gratuitousness. Overall, entertaining, but only for the fact of the cast and slight comedic moments. Formula 51 A qiute good offbeat film that unfortunately misses the mark. Buy Formula 51 at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Formula 51 Search with the Priority Search Engine on Formula 51 This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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