Samuel L. Jacksonis such a great ensemble player, but his comedic talents are often utilized for the sake of expositional chunks in major blockbusters. There are certain filmmakers like Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantinowho really know how to utilize Jackson’s comedic range. However, recent films like Robocop, The Legend of Tarzan, and a majority of his performances as Nick Fury within the Marvel Cinematic Universe do nothing more than bring Jackson in to add one-liners in between expositional chunks. However, the underrated buddy comedy film Formula 51 (previously called The 51st State) was the rare time he got to play a lead role beyond an elevated cameo. It was a film that showed why Jackson worked so well in both action and comedy roles, and it also gave him the chance to star opposite Robert Carlyle.
Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Carlyle Have Great Chemistry
While he’s now best known for his eccentricities (and the fact that he's been in more franchises than any other star), Jackson was doing some of his best dramatic work in the late 1990s. Roles in Eve’s Bayou, The Negotiator, A Time To Kill, The Red Violin, and Hard Eight suggested that his comedy days were long over, and the generally mixed response Jackson had received for his roles in Loaded Weapon 1 and The Long Kiss Goodnight had prompted him to be a bit pickier when it came to action comedies. At face value, Formula 51 seemed like it would be a chance to expand his international repertoire. The film was directed by Chinese genre filmmaker Ronny Yu in his second major American production following The Bride of Chucky and preceding Freddy vs. Jason.
Other than the intrigue of getting to work with an international auteur, Jackson may have signed up for Formula 51 in order to capitalize on another rising young talent in Carlyle. The British actor was once thought of as one of the great character actors of his time in the wake of Trainspotting, The Full Monty, and The World Is Not Enough. Similar to how Jackson turned the Die Hard franchise into a buddy comedy when he joined Bruce Willis for Die Hard with a Vengeance, which helped turn the lone hero into a buddy comedy, there was the potential for him and Carlyle to turn Formula 51 into an elevated work of satire on the nature of the police force and drug running. That wasn’t necessarily the case, but that doesn’t mean that Formula 51 is any less hilarious and sharp.
The line between satire and sincerity becomes increasingly unclear for a film like Formula 51 when the premise is so inherently absurd. Jackson stars as the brilliant chemist Elmo McElroy, who is mistakenly arrested on the assumption that he is smoking marijuana illegally. The film shows the blatant racism within the police force, as they are keen to arrest a Black man caught with drugs, regardless of his claims. As a result, Elmo must enlist the assistance of the idiosyncratic “fixer” Felix DeSouza (Carlyle) to clear his name. Comedy is often the result of tragedy, and Jackson invokes empathy with his initially toned-down performance; he was once working in a prestigious field, and now he has to work alongside a local idiot just to avoid the probing British cops that want to put him behind bars. The chance for both characters to prove something is what makes Formula 51 one of the funniest action comedies.
‘Formula 51’ Knows When to Get Serious
The banter between Carlyle and Jackson is on par with some of the best buddy cop movies, and it's excellent because it’s clear that they’re not on the same page when it comes to what they’re actually looking for. Felix’s goals aren’t any more complex than getting tickets to a sold-out football match between Liverpool and Manchester United, which initially rubs Elmo the wrong way. However, Felix’s streetwise knowledge soon proves to come in handy when the two need to make a quick getaway at the airport. Felix’s antagonization of a group of local Manchester fans sparks a riot among Liverpool supporters, and in the resulting chaos, he and Elmo are able to make a quick getaway. Jackson’s flabbergasted reaction is priceless.
Any great action comedy needs a great villain, but Formula 51 ensures that the threats in the film are as superficial as the rest of the premise. Felix and Elmo are pursued by a ruthless drug lord known as “The Lizard,” who is played by Meat Loaf in one of the famous performer’s most eccentric acting roles since The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Lizard puts enough pressure upon the two that there are genuine stakes within the frantic chase scenes, but he never drags down the tone to the point that it becomes too grim. The brilliance of Formula 51 is that the story itself isn’t played for laughs. What makes the movie work is the fact that Jackson is wearing a ridiculous wig, Carlyle is spouting a great deal of Scottish slang and profanity, and Meat Loaf is the villain.
Formula 51 also knows when to take itself seriously. Jackson adds enough natural depth to the role that he is able to elevate the material, but Carlyle is saddled with an additional storyline of dealing with his ex-wife Dawn (Emily Mortimer in one of her best roles prior to The Newsroom). When the film gets past the ridiculous plot mechanics of Dawn being a contract killer hired by the Lizard, the moments between her and Carlyle are actually somewhat sweet. It doesn’t feel like a distraction from the frantic action, but a chance for them to catch their breath. Jackson adds a lot to these scenes as he constantly mocks Carlyle for his doomed romantic endeavors.
Formula 51 isn’t “great cinema” by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s a fun slant on a genre that the industry rarely makes anymore. It was sadly one of the last major vehicles in Carlyle’s career, but for Jackson, it was yet another reminder of why he remains such a versatile star.
