>
Filled with profanities, Formula 51 is a stylized and incoherent mess that doesn't add up to much. Read critic reviews
What to know
You might also like
See More
Urban Legends: Final Cut
Cry Wolf
The Contract
Eye See You
Shadow Man
Where to watch The 51st State
Rate And Review
-
What did you think of the movie? (optional)
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
What did you think of the movie? (optional)
How did you buy your ticket?
-
Fandango
-
AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew
-
Cinemark Coming Soon
We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
-
Regal Coming Soon
We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
-
Theater box office or somewhere else
The 51st State Photos
Movie Info
"The 51st State" is the story of Elmo McElroy (Samuel L. Jackson), a streetwise American master chemist, who heads to England to set up his last big deal -- to introduce a new designer drug to the European market. McElroy soon becomes embroiled in a web of double-dealing as he's escorted around Liverpool's underworld and rave scene by rabid local hood Felix De Souza (Robert Carlyle), who hates all things American.
-
Rating: R (Language|Drug Content|Some Sexuality|Strong Violence)
-
Genre: Action, Comedy
-
Original Language: English
-
Director: Ronnie Yu
-
Producer: Andras Hamori, Samuel L. Jackson, Seaton McLean, Jonathan Debin, David Pupkewitz, Malcolm Kohll
-
Writer: Stel Pavlou
-
Release Date (Theaters): wide
-
Release Date (Streaming):
-
Box Office (Gross USA): $5.2M
-
Runtime:
-
Distributor: Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc., Screen Gems
-
Production Co: Alliance Atlantis Communications
-
Sound Mix: Surround, Stereo
-
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)
Cast & Crew
Critic Reviews for The 51st State
Audience Reviews for The 51st State
-
[img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon13.gif[/img]
-
Elmo (Samuel L. Jackson) is a loudmouthed pharmacist who gets busted on graduation day for marijuana possession and loses his license. We catch up with Elmo in the current day where he's a master chemist for a drug lord producing state of the art recreational drugs and the genius behind a designer 'wonder' drug P.O.S. 51 which is supposed to be 51 times as powerful as cocaine, heroin and any other drug you can name, worth a cool $20 million. More importantly it can be made using substances that are readily available over the counter worldwide. After ceremoniously blowing up his lab (and bosses) in Los Angeles, he heads to Liverpool, England, in a kilt, no less in search of a buyer for his new party favor. But in between dodging an assassin's bullets and trying to stay one step ahead of the law, Elmo finds an unlikely partner in a small-time gangster (Robert Carlyle) and a lovely Emily Mortimer who has a soft spot for Carlyle. Hang on tight for an action-packed thrill ride that you'll never forget! Being set mostly in England, the movie also has a very British style to it and an interesting cross between action and comedy. Formula 51 is loud, mindless, illogical, but full of style, fast paced action and one liners. Its escapism, so suffice to say I enjoyed it.
-
Formula 51 is the story of Elmo McElroy (Samuel L. Jackson), a streetwise American master chemist who heads to England to sell his special new formula -- a powerful blue concoction guaranteed to... Formula 51 is the story of Elmo McElroy (Samuel L. Jackson), a streetwise American master chemist who heads to England to sell his special new formula -- a powerful blue concoction guaranteed to take you to the 51st State. McElroy's new product delivers a feeling 51 times more powerful than any thrill, any pleasure, any high in history. But his plans for a quick, profitable score go comically awry when he gets stuck in with an unlikely escort (Robert Carlyle) and becomes entangled in a bizarre web of double-dealing and double-crosses. Elmo McElroy made one little mistake in 1971 -- he was caught smoking pot while driving home from his graduation. In the blink of an eye, his dream of being a fully licensed pharmacist went up in smoke like the joint in his hand. Fast forward to 2001 and McElroy is on the wrong side of the tracks. Left with no choice, he's been forced to use his professional talents illegally in order to make a living. He wants out of the business badly -- and he has an ace up his sleeve. It's a formula that's going to change his life and set him up for a terrific future. A wonder chemist, McElroy has created POS-51, a party favor promises to be a "personal visit fro God." The coup de grace is that this new creation is made from entirely legal ingredients. McElroy's boss, The Lizard (Meatloaf), an unsavory fellow with a skin condition, plans to sell POS-51 to a syndicate of the world's top dealers. But McElroy has other ideas and they don't include The Lizard. After staging a chemical "accident" at the Lizard's headquarters. McElroy takes his invention to Liverpool to sell it. But what McElroy doesn't know is that his old boss is alive and well and has dispatched the sultry Dakota (Emily Mortimer) a tough beauty with a sniper rifle and a matching attitude, to track him down. Dakota knows Liverpool well. It's where she left her ex-boyfriend Felix (Robert Carlyle), a tough, cranky, chain smoking fast talking hood. Felix now works for Liverpool's biggest thug, the man with whom McElroy is about to make a $20M deal. And Felix has been assigned to escort McElroy while he's in town. And so begins a tempestuous relationship, one that is cemented as rivals, cops, cars and the occasional pedestrian are systematically taken out of the equation by the formidable partnership of Elmo and Felix. For the arrival of the American chemist and his blue magic has sparked a gold rush the likes of which the city has never seen. Rival dealers would do anything to get their hands on the formula. Everyone -- club owners, cops, a gang of inept skinheads and The Lizard -- wants a piece of the action. Who will outsmart whom? Who will double-cross their best friends and former lovers? Who will walk away with the formula? Will the good guys retire to a castle in Scotland, or will love get in the way?
-
Not as good as I would have hoped it would be.
Verified