Riot’s Movie Reviews: The Little Things
Set in the backdrop of 1990’s Los Angeles, The Little Things, a neo noir-genre psychological thriller, follows two police officers as they try to hunt down a serial killer. Writer and director John Lee Hancock leads the audience on a deep-dive look into how criminal investigation affects the psychological status of detectives, giving the audience a raw view into the potential trauma these detectives can face. While strong performances by its leads help keep the viewer drawn into the events of the story, The Little Things gets mired in predictability and unveils a number of unanswered questions that leaves the viewer confused about the film’s true purpose.
After a suspenseful opening scene (more aligned with horror characteristics than thrillers) our introduction to the protagonist of the story, Joe Deacon (Denzel Washington), as he goes about the hum drum life of a deputy in Kern County, immediately feels out of place. Most everything about him is a mystery and the information we eventually glean about his life once he is forced to visit his old police department in Los Angeles does little to help the character become relatable, no matter how great the acting. His former co-workers are less than thrilled to see him, he is shown talking to dead people (both real and imaginary), and he is abrasive to almost everyone he comes across. His involvement in the murder investigation is initially only tolerated by its lead detective, Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) because of his previous experience and insight.
As the case begins to pick up steam due to Deacon’s involvement and a potential suspect is introduced in the form of a blue-collar repairman, Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) the tension of the film starts to thicken. Sparma’s overtly creepy demeanor and inexplicable depth of knowledge of the serial killer’s activity paints a far-too-obvious target on his back. With the suspect in sight, the two detectives rush headfirst into a series of increasingly drastic decisions in efforts to stop Sparma’s reign of terror. Without diving any farther into spoiler territory, the closing 30 minutes of the film become a string of predictable “twists” that unfortunately leave the audience feeling fairly underwhelmed.
At the very least, the story makes you disenchanted with who you are supposed to root for. The good guys aren’t necessarily good and by the end you aren’t even certain the bad guy was in fact bad. The “twists” at the end of the film felt forced, something I think has been common in this noir genre since Seven brilliantly blew the minds of everyone watching it. Baxter’s deterioration from unshakeable superhero detective to an obsessed and irrational man didn’t feel believable. The mentor/mentee plot line that is drawn between Baxter and Deacon doesn’t feel entirely genuine either, no matter how much their journeys as detectives are mirrored through the events of the story. It’s hard to make an argument against any of the three lead’s acting abilities in this film though. The compelling performances of the main three actors keep you watching, but it simply wasn’t enough to solve the issues with script’s lack of genuine character development. A two hour movie should have had plenty of time to really progress both men’s descent into their obsession and some unnecessary scenes likely could have been shaved to allow for these changes to be conveyed and give them legitimacy. The attempts to keep Deacon’s past a mystery inevitably prevents the audience from really connecting with the character. In the closing moments of the film, we are finally allowed the chance to understand why the two detectives are the way they are. The predictability of the revelation just takes all the impact out of the reveal. It’s a “too little, too late” situation.
All this being said, it would be wrong for me to say this movie wasn’t worth the time. The cinematography of the film was clean and well shot. All of the vehicles of the film travelled in slow, controlled ways which added to the tension of each scene. The score was haunting and suspenseful at all the right moments; the only strange music choice came literally at the end of the film leaving a vague confusion on whether or not you’re supposed to feel happy or depressed after it all plays out. Unlike a lot of films these days, there was no issue with sound balancing and the dialogue always came out clear and understandable no matter what was happening. While all three lead performances were noteworthy, I give an especially big nod to Jared Leto’s portrayal as Sparma. Continuing from what I thought to be a compelling rendition of another psychopathic character (The Joker) Leto’s creepy dialogue, physical demeanor, and piercing eyes had all the signs of a sick-minded person. At the end of the day, if I am going to reach for a psychological noir thriller to watch again, it’s probably not going to be The Little Things, but it was an interesting journey while it lasted.
Riot’s Rating: 6.5/10
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