MOVIE OF THE WEEK (2/23/13): SNITCH
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Dwayne Johnson, Jon Bernthal, Susan Sarandon, Barry Pepper, Benjamin Bratt, Michael Kenneth Williams, Nadine Velasquez, Melina Kanakaredes, Rafi Gavron, Lela Loren and JD Pardo
WRITER(S): Justin Haythe and Ric Roman Waugh
DIRECTOR: Ric Roman Waugh
WEB SITE: www.snitch-movie.com
THE PLOT: A tale "inspired by true events" (Hollywood doesn't say "based on a true story" anymore), Snitch stars Dwayne Johnson as John Matthews, a head honcho at a Missouri trucking company. Living with his new wife (Nadine Velasquez) and their young daughter (Kyara Campos), John has a pretty successful life with a nice house to boot.
As fate would have it, though, his son Jason (Rafi Gavron) – who has taken the last name of John's ex-wife/his mother Sylvie (Melinda Kanakaredes) – isn't doing so well. After having an online conversation with his best friend Craig (James Allen McCune), he ends up realizing that he really isn't his friend at all. Otherwise he wouldn't have set Jason up by sending a package full of drugs to his house he needed to sign for just to hold for a little while ... Which is exactly what happens so that the feds can come and arrest him.
Despite being only 18 and this being his first criminal offense of any kind, Jason now faces a minimum 10 year-prison sentence unless he agrees to help Joanne Keeghan (Susan Sarandon), a federal prosecutor and aspiring politician, arrest other drug dealers. Jason, not knowing any other dealers, however, declines.
John however – willing to risk everything to save his son – offers to step in an go undercover in his place. And unfortunately for Daniel James (Jon Bernthal), a new employee at the trucking company trying to get his life together, John is likely going to make him an offer that's too good to pass up.
Once fully engrossed in the criminal underworld, John eventually meets Malik (Michael Kenneth Williams), one of "Cruiser's" (Daniel) best known and most connected associates from his past. But bringing Malik to justice is just small change compared to bringing down "El Topo" (Benjamin Bratt), one of the biggest players in the drug game ...
THE TAKE: Featuring by far the most acting in terms of range Johnson – who is back to being The Rock again in select arenas nationwide in case you missed it – has shown to date in a film. The Rock, er, Johnson has never had a problem showing braun or intensity as a character. Give his level of physical fitness – he's almost the equivalent of a walking, breathing bicep, for goodness sake – Johnson shows something in Snitch I date say he's never done before in a movie: A real, believability sense of vulnerability that is vital to character and his success as said character in the movie. You can feel a sense of Johnson being in very real peril as the dedicated but out of his league Matthews, a man who is forced into awkward position after awkward position and has to adapt on the fly. His performance really give the film a center the audience can connect with as does Bernthal, who makes the most out of character's standard I-got-to-get-out-the-game-but-have-to-do-this-last-job-to-help-my-family internal conflict. While it may be weird for Walking Dead fans to see Shane be so non-evil, Bernthal does a phenomenal job of showing he's not a one-note actor by any means.
Likewise, the majority of the cast – save for an ocean of a wet blanket performance by Kanakaredes as Johnson's ex-wife – also does a solid job to bring the story to life, creating a good level of tension (while not on a Argo-level) that makes Snitch an effective if not familiar (at least in feel) story. If nothing else, fans of The Wire will be happy to see Michael Kenneth Williams back in an Omar-like role. It's not so much that Snitch is groundbreaking in any way, but it is done well enough to keep your attention – and that makes the film persevere beyond its limited nature.
As fate would have it, though, his son Jason (Rafi Gavron) – who has taken the last name of John's ex-wife/his mother Sylvie (Melinda Kanakaredes) – isn't doing so well. After having an online conversation with his best friend Craig (James Allen McCune), he ends up realizing that he really isn't his friend at all. Otherwise he wouldn't have set Jason up by sending a package full of drugs to his house he needed to sign for just to hold for a little while ... Which is exactly what happens so that the feds can come and arrest him.
Despite being only 18 and this being his first criminal offense of any kind, Jason now faces a minimum 10 year-prison sentence unless he agrees to help Joanne Keeghan (Susan Sarandon), a federal prosecutor and aspiring politician, arrest other drug dealers. Jason, not knowing any other dealers, however, declines.
John however – willing to risk everything to save his son – offers to step in an go undercover in his place. And unfortunately for Daniel James (Jon Bernthal), a new employee at the trucking company trying to get his life together, John is likely going to make him an offer that's too good to pass up.
Once fully engrossed in the criminal underworld, John eventually meets Malik (Michael Kenneth Williams), one of "Cruiser's" (Daniel) best known and most connected associates from his past. But bringing Malik to justice is just small change compared to bringing down "El Topo" (Benjamin Bratt), one of the biggest players in the drug game ...
THE TAKE: Featuring by far the most acting in terms of range Johnson – who is back to being The Rock again in select arenas nationwide in case you missed it – has shown to date in a film. The Rock, er, Johnson has never had a problem showing braun or intensity as a character. Give his level of physical fitness – he's almost the equivalent of a walking, breathing bicep, for goodness sake – Johnson shows something in Snitch I date say he's never done before in a movie: A real, believability sense of vulnerability that is vital to character and his success as said character in the movie. You can feel a sense of Johnson being in very real peril as the dedicated but out of his league Matthews, a man who is forced into awkward position after awkward position and has to adapt on the fly. His performance really give the film a center the audience can connect with as does Bernthal, who makes the most out of character's standard I-got-to-get-out-the-game-but-have-to-do-this-last-job-to-help-my-family internal conflict. While it may be weird for Walking Dead fans to see Shane be so non-evil, Bernthal does a phenomenal job of showing he's not a one-note actor by any means.
Likewise, the majority of the cast – save for an ocean of a wet blanket performance by Kanakaredes as Johnson's ex-wife – also does a solid job to bring the story to life, creating a good level of tension (while not on a Argo-level) that makes Snitch an effective if not familiar (at least in feel) story. If nothing else, fans of The Wire will be happy to see Michael Kenneth Williams back in an Omar-like role. It's not so much that Snitch is groundbreaking in any way, but it is done well enough to keep your attention – and that makes the film persevere beyond its limited nature.
PARTING SHOT: While not dynamic in any individual capacity, Snitch delivers a solid, tense drama about a father's love for his son that equates to an enjoyable cinematic experience.
RATING (OUT OF FOUR BUCKETS OF POPCORN):
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