The Little Things has this great atmospheric tone to it that really screams crime genre, and that along with some fantastic performances help boost the film past its narrative shortcomings. During the first act of the film I couldn’t help but briefly reminisce about how much this film felt like it jumped right out of the ‘90s, where the detective chasing the serial killer storyline was arguably at its height for major motion pictures. The Little Things hearkens back to that era and it actually made me want to go back and revisit some films that have long since taken a place in the backburner of my memory. It perfectly captures the feel that any good dramatic crime thriller should, keeping the viewer on edge, uncomfortable, emotionally attached, all while they try to piece together the case alongside the detective.
The Little Things has a great cast; however, I do have to stop and just once again stand in awe to the man known as Denzel Washington. As if there weren’t so many other reasons to want to slow down the clock, here’s an actor that’s just absolutely mesmerizing in any role he portrays, and I just want to see him in so much more. Washington plays former L.A. Sheriff’s Detective Joe ‘Deke’ Deacon, a man who has been through the worst of it and barely crawled out the other side. Deke is content to live out his days quietly in Kern County, CA, as a deputy sheriff; however, a routine run into L.A. to pick up some evidence ends up with him learning of a serial killer in the area that has an M.O. similar to that of the killer in a case he was never able to solve.
Alongside Washington is Rami Malek, who plays Detective Jim Baxter, the man taking point on the current serial murders case that has piqued Deke’s interest. The two characters have a lot of similarities for all their differences, and while the film’s writer/director, John Lee Hancock does a decent job of setting them up, it’s the performances that really strike home. The same can be said about the pair’s lead suspect, Albert Sparma (Jared Leto), who just plays the part beautifully.
Now that’s not to say that Hancock’s script is bad, because it’s not; however, it’s one of those unfortunate story casualties that suffers from wanting to do too much and in doing so causes the overall product to fall a bit flat in its impact. The film’s narrative structure becomes a bit flimsy when trying to intertwine the backstory of Deke and why he left the department and the present day case that’s brought him back into the mix, and because of this it’s hard to fully get on board with where the pair of detective’s heads are at when it comes to piecing the case together in their own way.
It’s hard to delve too deep without treading into spoilers with a film like this, so it’s sometimes best to keep it simple. The Little Things ends up being a case of good enough, where it never reaches the potential you wish it could have – and deserved to with the performances this talented trio delivered – but at the same time it gets the idea of what it was trying to achieve across well enough that it does work on the most basic levels. Add on the fact that Hancock really nails the film tonally and depending on how invested you are as a viewer, there is a resonating impact (just not as much of one as there should’ve been,) and you’ve got a solid, albeit familiar entry into a genre that just doesn’t see much love on this scale these days.
Video and Audio:
This is a great looking film. The Blu-ray transfer looks beautiful, and it’s unfortunate that there wasn’t a 4K release made available as it truly would’ve shone in that format. Still, this movie just feels like a detective thriller right out of the gate, and that’s greatly in part to the visual choices made by Hancock and Cinematographer John Schwartzman. On the audio side of things we’ve got a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track which does the job nicely. There’s clean dialogue, which is always important, and the score and sound effects mix together nicely to keep the wonderful, darker tone of the film steady throughout.
Special Features:
Four Shades of Blue – This feature comes in at just under 10-minutes and sees various people talking about the four times Washington has played a police officer in Warner Bros. films and how they compare, overlap, etc. It’s a fine watch, but it’s not really what you’re after when you only have two small featurettes on the disc.
A Contrast in Styles – This featurette comes in at just under eight minutes and sees the cast and crew talking about the styles of Washington, Malek and Leto, what it was like working together and how much they admire one another. Again, a fine, quick watch, but it would’ve been nice to have had a feature focusing on the film itself, the ideas behind it, bringing it to life, and so forth.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents The Little Things. Written & Directed by: John Lee Hancock. Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto. Running time: 128 Minutes. Rating: 14A. Released on Blu-ray: May 4, 2021.
About Brendan Campbell
