The Little Things
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto
Directed By: John Lee Hancock
Rated: R
No, today’s review is not about Colbie Cailliat’s song “The Little Things.” That would be really weird if that song were featured in this movie. But this movie does open with a girl singing “Roam” by the B52’s so that was certainly…a choice…considering the overall tone.
The Little Things is a mystery thriller (I’m using the term thriller lightly here) following Deputy Sherriff Deacon (Denzel Washington) as he tries to hunt down a serial killer on the loose in Los Angeles. Deacon has spent 5 years dedicated to the case with no leads. When he believes the killer strikes again, he teams up with Jimmy Baxter (Rami Malek) to find him and bring him to justice.
Director John Lee Hancock wrote the script for The Little Things in the 90s. The film has been in development since that time so it feels a little outdated. There are shades of Zodiac and Seven present in its tone, but it never soars close to the heights of either due to questionable writing and directorial choices. Speaking of questionable script choices, the dialogue in this movie is laughable. During a climactic scene, Jared Leto looks straight into another character’s eyes and says, “Oh, Poop. I made a boo boo.” I am not exaggerating. This is real dialogue. I made sure to turn on the captions to make sure I heard that correctly.
We have to talk about the fact that this movie has 3 Oscar winners for its cast yet squanders its potential to be an exciting thriller. What is that about? What films like Zodiac and Seven did so brilliantly is keep the viewer invested with every turn. They took an A-list cast and kept you focused on each character. There are sections of The Little Things that are straight-up dull.
Denzel Washington is Denzel. He’s always going to make the best of his material. The man is an acting legend. Something is hanging over his character Deacon’s head for the entirety of the film that isn’t revealed until the final act. It’s almost glossed over when the reveal finally happens. It would’ve helped us understand his character more if this reveal was uncovered in the second act.
I’ve seen several reviews saying Rami Malek is flat-out bad in this movie. I don’t necessarily think he gave a terrible performance, but it’s not as good as what I’ve seen him in lately. Part of that is because I don’t think the script has a clear idea of who his character is. One minute Jimmy is a hot-shot detective; the next, he exhibits idiotic decision-making. Let’s just say the character was very oddly written.
I hate to type these words. Ugh, I understand why Jared Leto is getting awards recognition for this movie. He is the most interesting part of The Little Things as the potential serial killer, Albert Sparma. He’s the only person who seems fully awake in the movie. As the audience, we have no idea if he is just an extremely bizarre person or if he really has killed before. It presents an extreme moral dilemma for Deacon and Jimmy throughout the case.
I will NOT finish this review without talking about this movie's editing because I have no idea what it was. There are sequences of this movie that are so choppy and disjointed. Also, specific segments make me believe the editor and director have two completely different visions for what this movie was. When I finished watching the movie, I thought back on individual scenes and wondered why that moment was included. There is a scene with Deacon creepily watching women in a car and another with Jimmy’s wife asking about an alarm. In the film's context, these moments are so odd that you’re left questioning…what was the point of that? These are “little things” included that leave you confused.
There’s no doubt that The Little Things had a ton of potential. Three Oscar winners starring in a mystery thriller sounds like a success to me. Unfortunately, its dull script and jumbled editing make for a disappointment. (And those are big things.)
My Rating: 5/10