Snitch - L'infiltrato

I went into this film alone, on a lazy Saturday to get my mind off things. I wasn't expecting much, but I didn't want it to be a waste of 11 bucks. Knowing the market of action/thriller blockbusters, I guess I was expecting cars blowing up, gun fights all through the movie, and some crazy, somewhat unrealistic hand to hand combat by our huge friend Dwayne Johnson. I was expecting you're average, predictable "normal citizen suddenly becomes Jason Bourne" type action packed movie. If you're expecting that, and ONLY that, you will be somewhat disappointed. Lucky for me, I am a huge film buff and am open to sitting through any movie of any type and I just look for something entertaining, and this movie did not disappoint in that regard. The first hour and a half of it can legitimately be classified as more of a suspense-drama than a thriller. The screenplay wasn't anything amazing, but I do think Dwayne Johnson might have thrown himself in the eye of some producers and directors who write him off as no talent. His acting made the movie as believable as it was, and along with some of the supporting characters, and gritty suspenseful situations, this film found a way to intrigue me more than I thought it would have. The quote at the end of the film spoke volumes as to what the message of the movie was, and I think it was very well put together. If you're going to see this movie solely for action/entertainment value, then you might not be so happy with your investment, but if you want a well rounded, legitimate movie to go when you're bored or with a friend, I would recommend Snitch.

I'm going to be somewhat vague about the plot to not give away anything.

My wife and I decided we wanted to go see a movie, both of us enjoy action movies and both of us enjoy Dwayne Johnson as an actor. Neither of use really thought it was going to be anything but a bunch of explosions, gun fights, and ass-whippings. I was amazingly surprised at how far Johnson has come in his acting ability since Mummy 2/Walking Tall. He showed real and believable emotions in his interactions with his "family" and others. Jon Bernthal was the perfect choice for his role. He showed even with this supporting role he is ready to be a major lead in my opinion. Susan Sarandon played her job as a career politician to the absolute limit.

If you are looking for a generic action movie, go see Die-Hard. If you want to see the story of how far parents will go for their children see this movie.

Another plane journey another film that never appealed to me before but seemed good enough to fill some hours with not much else to do. Based on a true story this film sees a working man getting drawn into a drug sting operation in return for reduced time for his son, who was also innocently drawn into a drug dealing charge. In terms of narrative what we get is fairly events-driven and obvious; characters get put in danger, drug dealers are only marginally less trustworthy than the authorities, families are under stress and so on.

As a story it does the job but doesn't deliver anything other than what you expect – even without knowing the story you probably already know the story since it does more or less what you think it will. In terms of what happens there are not too many opportunities for set-pieces but the film should be able to really hatchet up the tension given what is at stake. Unfortunately it doesn't ever really do this – moments of intense danger seem staged and although there are manly confrontations there isn't too much sustained pressure that translated across to the viewer. This failing leaves the film feeling a bit pedestrian even if it does enough to engage to a certain degree.

The cast help it, in particular the presence of Johnson. He is not a great actor but he is more than enough of a presence to make a difference; I've always found he has an easy charisma and this is another example of that working in the favor of the project. Supporting cast is less reliable even if there are some big names and faces in there such as Sarandon, Bernthal, Pepper, Williams, Velazquez and others. Bratt stars as the main threat but beyond looking a bit sinister he really does do anything of note.

Snitch is a decent enough story told in a workmanlike fashion. It benefits from some good performances but it is still only a so-so watch and nothing more than that.

Snitch (2013)

*** (out of 4)

Surprisenly effective drama about a father (Dwayne Johnson) who agrees to go undercover after his son is arrested in a drug bust, which could cost him at least ten years in prison. The father goes undercover to bring down a Mexican drug lord and soon finds himself in over his head. SNITCH was based around actual events, although I'm guessing a lot of stuff was either left out or just blended together to get this story. With that said, those expecting a non-stop action picture like the trailers made this out to be might be disappointed because for the most part this is a straight drama. The action doesn't come into play until the very end of the picture but this certainly isn't a negative thing. The best thing going for the film is actually the performance of Johnson who turns in the best work of his career. What really shocked me was how believable he was in the role of a blue collar father who will stop at nothing to protect the son who really doesn't care for him. I really thought Johnson stole the picture with his acting because the screenplay really gives him quite a bit to play. Not only does his not play your typical action hero, he manages to make you believe that he's this scared guy who finds himself in over his head but at the same time he knows he must do what he has to to protect his son. The supporting cast is also extremely good with Susan Sarandon turning in a nice performance as a woman making the deals with the father. Jon Bernthal offers up a sensitive and believable performance as a father who gets dragged into the mess and the underrated Barry Pepper is extremely good in his role as an agent. Michael Kenneth Williams also delivers a good performance as a drug dealer. The film is pretty laid back for the most part and I thought this was an interesting approach by director Ric Roman Waugh who proves he can handle telling a story and casually building up the suspense. There are certainly some flaws with the story including it being way too easy for this father to get close to a major cartel but this isn't bad enough to where it kills the film. SNITCH is a pretty good drama that manages to grab your attention and really bring you close to this father character. A lot of credit goes to Johnson.

I have never been much of a fan of The Rock. My love of professional wrestling tapered off around the time I was about 15 years old, and that was before The Rock's heydey. His movies (the ones I have seen) have been marginal at best in my opinion. But for a guy who was ushered into the field of acting to capitalize on his popularity and not to win Academy Awards, he has come a long way from The Scorpion King. What I liked about "Snitch" is it's the anti-action movie. I expected a movie like the terrible "Last Stand" starring Ah-nold Schwarzenegger. I expected fabricated car chases and shootouts where the bad guys must be shooting blanks because they are unable to shoot the good guy even when they have a clear shot. I expected scenes where The Rock would beat up 10 guys who all take turns coming at him instead of simply jumping him. But "Snitch" was different. It's a story of the lengths a father will go to help his son. I don't want to give away any spoilers but he goes very far. The Rock -- he's credited as Dwayne Johnson (I guess so viewers take the movie seriously) -- is very believable and does himself proud with some consistent good acting. He shows the trepidation and vulnerability of a father who puts his life on the line to save his son, who is imprisoned after committing a dumb crime. But the actor who steals the movie is John Bernthal, who plays an ex-con trying to live an honest life but is dragged back to the dark side in order to help The Rock, whom he works for doing construction. Michael Kenneth Williams will forever be known as "Omar" and is typecast but does a good turn as a drug dealer. The other supporting cast, including Susan Sarandon as a district attorney, are excellent. "Snitch" moves at a deliberate pace, which gives it more of a natural and believable feel. The few action sequences are good and do not seem overly exaggerated. I will go out on a limb and say this movie will not be nominated for Best Picture, but compared with the junk I've seen so far this year (including the latest Die Hard), I recommend "Snitch".