2013 has been a big year for Dwayne Johnson so far with several box office hits, where the success of at last two have given the man formerly known as The Rock the biggest credit. And then there's Snitch, a forgettable action-thriller that makes almost no sense when you actually think about it.

In Snitch, Johnson stars as John Matthews, a businessman whose life is turned upside down when his teenage son is sort-of-but-not-entirely falsely arrested and placed in federal prison for drug dealing. In a desperation move, John decides to go undercover to find a viable and real drug dealer whose arrest could help reduce his son's sentence.

Stupid kids these days. Look what you made your father do.

Snitch, which harps about how there are mandatory federal sentencing guidelines for drug dealing that are often longer than sentences handed out for rape and murder, has a story to tell, but the story doesn't make much sense. The movie, which is written by Justin Haythe (The Lone Ranger) and director Ric Roman Waugh, is plagued by inconsistencies and plot holes, including:

• John's complete disregard for the well being of his employee Daniel (Jon Bernthal), an ex-con and family man
• Daniel's willingness to help John nonetheless
• The government agreeing to just let some random guy with no training go undercover without any supervision

Often dumb action movies can gloss over some of these details - hell, Johnson has starred in more than a few of those - but Waugh doesn't treat Snitch like a dumb action movie. With a brooding score and a surprisingly serious tone, it's clear that the filmmakers thought Snitch was smarter than it actually was. Johnson turns in an okay performance, especially considering he isn't acting as a tough guy for a change, but without his macho, kick-everyone's-ass persona in play, the problems with the screenplay are much more glaring.

Snitch has a couple decent but forgettable action scenes, though in fairness the movie isn't really an action movie; it's a crime thriller. But the movie is too stupid to serve as a viable crime thriller, or as a worthwhile piece of entertainment. 2013 has been a big year for Dwayne Johnson, but Snitch is a movie that's best left in the bargain bin.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.