Just because a film is inspired by true events does not make it a more powerful story or a better movie. Such is the case with Snitch, which opened in theatres February 22nd. Although the film is decent, it does not pack a punch like the trailer promised and the overall acting is pretty mediocre.
Snitch is the story of John Matthews, a well-off construction business owner who becomes a snitch for the police department in order to free his teenage son from prison for possessing narcotics. On the way he enlists the help of his employee, a former drug-pusher, Daniel (Jon Bernthal) who has to stay clean for his family.
The plot is intriguing, but nothing special, while the script and acting are subpar. Most of the film is just dialogue back and forth. Almost every single conversation seems forced. Although this is because the writing in the script is not that great, it comes off as it being because the film has inexperienced actors. If you are not one of the many who are obsessed with "The Walking Dead", there's a slim chance you have seen Jon Bernthal before this. If that is the case you would think he was new to acting because that is how his lines are delivered. It is not just him either. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is more convincing than his sidekick, but he is not the driving force when it comes to acting either. In fact, the only two who give solid performances are the evil US Attorney Susan Sarandon and her cop assistant, played by Barry Pepper. It is easy to root for them to be in more of the film because they are the most believable.
Although the script leaves much to be desired, the most disappointing part of the film is that the trailer leads you to believe it is going to be a lot of action. As mentioned previously, most of the 1 hour and 52 minute run time is back and forth dialogue with some tense situations, but nothing that makes you sit on the edge of your seat. There are a total of two scenes that could be classified as "action", and the details of one of them do not even rwally make sense.
Snitch was an ok film, but was mostly just disappointing. If you want to see it to watch The Rock beat people up or to watch cars explode like you have seen on the tv ads, save your money for when the film releases on DVD. There is not anything special in the film that you would need to see on the big screen. You also will be able to pause the movie when the back-and-forth dialogue gets mundane.
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