Dwayne Johnson (a.k.a. The Rock) stars in Snitch as the father of a teenage boy who has been charged with distributing drugs.
Based on a true story, Snitch exemplifies how a shift in America’s anti-drug laws, including federal mandatory minimum sentencing and conspiracy provisions, has bred a culture of snitching that is rewarding the guiltiest and punishing the less guilty or, in this case, how the innocent can be set up as a scapegoat.
We say, “It’s the year of The Rock.”
TAYLOR: This is the first of four movies this year featuring The Rock. Sorry, I mean Dwayne Johnson. This film, however, is different than all of them, indeed, different than any film he has ever done. This film dares to ask the question, “Can The Rock act?”
HOWE: That’s like you asking me if I think you could wrestle in the WWE. The answer is no. He gives it an honest go but he just can’t quite pull it off. It is a nice change though not having to witness him ripping his shirt off, muscles popping on top of other muscles and looking downright menacing. It’s just that in the more tender moments in the movie he looks confused, with forced emotions.
TAYLOR: I agree. I think people go to a Johnson movie expecting “The Rock.” They wanna see him be cocky, punch some guy in the face and make a smart aleck quip. This movie does not give you these things. So the question has to be asked, “If Johnson isn’t going to beat somebody up, is the movie worth seeing?”
HOWE: Maybe.
TAYLOR: It’s difficult for me to answer this without setting my standards a little lower. Snitch is a film that features TV grade acting. In fact, with the exception of small parts performed by Susan Sarandon and Barry Pepper, the actors in this film come from television.
Johnson is good at big gestures. His ability to be subtle is limited. Having said that, this is a film that demonstrates his growth as an actor. If he had attempted to make this film 10 years ago, it would be laughably bad.
HOWE: I don’t agree that this is TV quality. It’s better than that. Director Ric Roman Waugh had $15 million to make Snitch and he spent it wisely. Nothing too extravagant or over the top, it’s just a good storyline with no editing mistakes or missing scenes, which makes it a nice change to what we have been seeing just recently.
TAYLOR: There’s nothing particularly wrong with the film and I applaud Johnson’s willingness to grow in ways other than physically, which my rating will illustrate. The thing I found most interesting about this film was the true aspects of the story.
The drug laws encourage snitching, even for the basest and simplest of charges. America leads the world in incarcerating its own citizens and it seems that a large portion of those people are only there due to the politics of “the war on drugs.”
— Taylor gives Snitch 2.5 years served out of 5.
— Howe gives it 3 express delivery parcels out of 5.
The film is currently showing at Vernon’s Galaxy Cinemas.
— Brian Taylor and Peter Howe are movie reviewers based in Vernon, B.C. Their column, Reel Reviews, appears in The Morning Star every Friday and Sunday.
