The Formula

Directed by John G. Avildsen, The Formula follows a cop (George C. Scott’s Barney Caine) as he stumbles upon a far-reaching conspiracy during a seemingly routine murder investigation. Filmmaker Avildsen, working from a script by Steve Shagan, delivers a progressively underwhelming endeavor that starts out with a reasonable degree of promise, as the picture, which runs a punishingly overlong 117 minutes, boasts an intriguing opening stretch that effectively establishes the aforementioned mystery and Scott’s agreeably grizzled figure – with the watchable vibe heightened by Avildsen’s periodically stylish visual choices (eg a striking single-take walk-and-talk through a government building). It’s clear, then, that The Formula‘s downfall is triggered by a repetitive midsection focused on Caine’s increasingly tiresome investigation (ie it’s just one tedious interview after another), and there’s little doubt, as well, that the disastrously interminable finale ensures that the picture ends on about as anti-climactic a note as one could possible envision – which does, in the final analysis, confirm the movie’s place as a misguided piece of work that feels so much longer than its runtime.

* out of ****