MovieChat Forums > The 51st State (2002) Discussion > Title Change

Title Change

posted 19 years ago by mark-1224
15 replies | jump to latest

Why was the title changed for the US release from "The 51st State" to "Formula 51"? I know it's done a lot just wondering why in this case. Also why is ti even called "The 51st State"? Shouldn't England be called the 52nd state seeing as there are 51 states in the USA or am I missing something?

Also don't you think it was a weird choice of director that the production studios made or even if the director bid for it himself? I mean let's face it his other films have not only been different but the western ones have been *beep* - Bride of Chucky and Freddy vs. Jason.

Help would be appreciated...

Mark.
What is the point in living, if you can't feel alive? www.the-good-sh*t.tk (replace the *)

[–] rehashed 19 years ago

FYI: There are 50 states in the US, not 51.

[–] mark-1224 19 years ago

ah that explains it then! sorry for being dumb...

Mark.
What is the point in living, if you can't feel alive? www.the-good-sh*t.tk (replace the *)

[–] penarol10 19 years ago

I recently saw the movie and i can only assume that they called it the 51st State, as a refernce to how the drug is supposed to make you feel. However, it makes little difference, as the Formula 51 makes a little bit more sense, since it refers to how the drug is made. Bad movie overall.

[–] deovuk 19 years ago

People in the UK who feel that America is taking over the world and we are their puppet refer to the UK as the 51st State. It came about in the eighties when we had more in common with the US than Europe (Thatcher/Reagan).

[–] jeswilcan 19 years ago

Brits who think the US is trying to take over the world are just upset because the sun actually sets on the Good Ole' Union Jack these days. Being called Imperialist by old European countries is about as pot and kettle as it gets. Just not able to compete as superpowers on the world stage anymore, so you tossers lick your wounds and whine from the sidelines. God bless Tony Blair for not being a ponce like most of the European population.

-Jesse
Unabashedly Patriotic American with an IQ WELL above my shoe size.

[–] dmi-x 19 years ago

Is there anything more arrogant than a yank? Oh and I'm not English by the way so don't think I'm defending the pommes. I'll leave my country out of this haha.

All I can say is Formula 51 is a much better name that The 51st State. It just doesn't capture the essence of the movie as well.

[–] brodie_kashmir 19 years ago

I agree with you Jesse.

I may be a liberal. I may have voted for Kerry. But I do feel a certain sense of patriotism when people from England, France, Portugal, Germany, China, Russia, Japan, Spain, Italy, certain Middle Eastern nations accuse us of being imperialistic.

If these people knew anything about global history, it's that all those countries have a history of imperialism.

There's a reason that everyone South O' The Border speaks Spanish/Portugese.

Marco Polo, Amerigo Vespucci and Chris Columbus... all a bunch of goombas.

Brits had their dicks in so many pussies around the world it caught 17 types of the clap. Why do the people of South Africa, Australia and New Zealand speak with bastardized British accents?

Do you foreigners really want to get into the imperialistic pissing contest? Go for it. You'll win. *beep* we'll probably be pissing on our shoes for most of it, while you're hitting the target 100 yards away.

The only reason they think that we're so bad is because of the Global Media Village. Everyone knows about what's going on everywhere else. In the 15th century, do you think some dumb as *beep* farmer in the Scottish countryside knew about Chris Columbus visiting the Western world? Pft, no, and he probably wouldn't have cared if he did.

Compare your lives to mine and then kill yourselves!- Bender AIM: brodiekashmir

[–] tomselectronicmail 19 years ago

dmi-x shouldn't you be calling us septic tanks?

bush damn well is trying to take over the world. and blair is right there with him. they both talk about how evil things are and how we have to change things. we are imperialistic, we still own guam and american samoa, we controlled the philippines, we owned the panama canal until the very late 90's. hell, we controlled south america from the time that roosevelt took over until lbj took over.

we are as imperialist as they claim. no other country pretends they didn't muck around globally except us. now why is that? we have a lot of "patriots" that defend stuff they don't understand.

[–] fearthespork 19 years ago

Idiot.

European countries may have been extremely Imperialistic in the past, but no longer. The USA is doing it here and now so obviously and deliberately that I cannot see how anyone can call the apathetic, consumerist, democratically stagnant poor excuse for a country anything but Imperialist.

And its not even current events, the USA have been doing this for quite a while. Look at Palestine etc. Here (http://www.isometry.com/usahate.html) is somewhat of a history lesson.

[–] anubis1864 19 years ago

lol I have to ask...if the United States is such a "bad" country...why the hell does everyone want to come here and/or live here?

[–] vinnie_vegas69 19 years ago

This is a classic case of the logic being sound, but the premise being completely, entirely, utterly flawed.

Yes, if everyone wanted to come and live in America, then it would be hypocritical for people to call it a bad country.

But not everyone wants to come to and/or live in America. That's the kind of typical American arrogance that has so many people across the world absolutely fed up.

I am an American citizen living overseas, and I can tell you, people who go on and on about America being the greatest country in the world are totally full of crap.

America is a great country, but so is England, so is Italy, so is France, so is Australia, so is Switzerland, so is Japan, and so are dozens of other countries, and there is NO REASON that America can be judged universally better than any of them.

It's like when you've got a friend with a good looking girlfriend, and then he starts on about how she's so much better looking than your girlfriend, or anyone else in the room. You get pissed off at the guy, even if she actually is good looking.

[–] anubis1864 19 years ago

Your points are valid, but obviously this country is NOT as horrible as a lot of critics overseas think, because we still get lots of people who visit here and move here.

[–] gomerpyl3 19 years ago

Total Bollocks...

'Everyone'? What a pile of sh^te, spat from the filthy, fat, smelly and uneducated mouth of an arrogant american tosser. It's no wonder the words and actions of a minority can turn a planet against an entire continent.

I apologise if I offend the millions of calm, level-headed, nice Americans.

Listen Anubis1864:

NOT EVERYONE WANTS TO VISIT AND/OR LIVE IN AMERICA.

Why?

It's simple -
1) What does America have to offer that other countries don't?
2) Arrogance. "America is better than the UK", "America kicked ass in the Gulf/WW2". Whilst true on some levels and to a certain extent, many Americans are reluctant to acknowledge that a 3rd party was also involved.

I could go on, but I won't.

In case you're interested in my favourite place to go... Perpignan, in Southern France - by the Mediterranean, an hour from Spain and the Pyrenees and a scenic 3hr drive from the Atlantic coast

[–] jamesmackay 19 years ago

1) What does America have to offer that other countries don't?

Well, money. THAT's why so many people want to come to your country. Nothing to do with how great your culture is. Most 1st generation immigrants couldn't really give a toss about your various overblown symbols. Those huddled masses at the base of the Statue of liberty? They're screaming "SHOW ME DA MONEY!"

And where does that money come from? Global economic imperialism, perhaps? Profiteering from WWII?

[–] 19 years ago

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