If social relevance were cinema’s only responsibility, Rendition would be a great film. It has torture, terrorism, ticking time-bombs and other plot elements inspired by the process of “extraordinary rendition,” the transfer of suspects to countries without U.S. judicial oversight.

Chemical engineer Anwar El-Ibrahimi (Omar Metwally) returns to Chicago after a business trip. But before he and pregnant wife (Reese Witherspoon) reunite, men in black whisk him from O’Hare to subject him to interrogation techniques. CIA analyst Douglas Freeman (Jake Gyllenhaal) observes in horror and questions where his loyalties should lie.

Now that sounds vaguely familiar.

In fact, the premise echoes real-life cases, such as Syrian-born Maher Arar’s torture and detainment through most of 2003. A thriller so topical should, in theory, not just entertain viewers but inspire them to political activism. Not Rendition. The story’s too familiar to shock and it’s too predictable to challenge viewers’ intelligence.

To make matters worse, director Gavin Hood films grisly torture and ordinary conversation with the same objective lens. The attempt toward realism is commendable, but the result is fairly monotonous.

Metwally makes a believable torture victim, and the chief interrogator (Yigal Naor) adds a new spin to the issues at hand. But it’s Gyllenhaal the script makes a hero, and he’s just wrong for the part. He’s too young, so his emerging idealism seems less like a transformation and more like bowing to the inevitable.

With the film’s main plot so lifeless, a melodramatic subplot featuring star-crossed Muslim lovers (Zineb Oukach and Moa Khouas) becomes more engaging than it has any right to be.

Rendition wastes the most talented of its cast on undemanding roles. Trailers portray Reese Witherspoon as the film’s star, but the somewhat insignificant role of anxious, expectant mother doesn’t call for an Oscar-winning actress. The stereotypical quest to track down her husband is occasionally interesting, but it involves too many people with too little to do, depriving everyone else in the movie of screen time that could develop their characters. The film’s biggest name is Meryl Streep, and the CIA antiterror squad director she plays is satisfyingly cold. But Streep’s on screen too little and her character is surprisingly forgettable.

If you already know the U.S. torture policy and think it is wrong, Rendition is completely redundant. If you don’t, a fictional tale is still superfluous. If you want to be inspired to change the world, go watch a documentary.