The Little Things (2021) Review

 

The Little Things (2021)

The Little Things follows former detective Deke and current LAPD detective Jim Baxter as they look to solve a string of serial killings that have been ongoing for 5 years.

I had a slight aversion to watching this due to strongly disliking a couple of the leads, but it’s a new movie, so why not. And with that said, it relatively lived up to the expectations I had. It was a classic serial killer, thriller where two cops join forces in stopping him, but i think the most enjoyable bit was the moral ambiguity that isn’t really present until the third act. Baxter is a clean-cut, good detective and Deke isn’t really the opposite, just more forceful in his approach. Opposite them however is Sparma, a weaselly-looking, crime enthusiast, who they believe is the killer, as he matches every piece of evidence associated with the killer. 

The opening is extremely thrilling, but from there, it honestly drops off a lot and is a waiting game that forces the viewer to try to invest into the characters, but for me, just wasn’t happening. The final act though was clever, utilizing three consecutive twists to throw you for a loop just as you get settled from the first twist, with the final one being an extremely tough pill to swallow.

The film is led by the Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto, with Washington getting to show himself as a grizzled, mostly tortured, but not perfect or badass, former cop, which feels refreshing compared to his more recent roles. Malek was relatively okay, but for much of the movie he just wasn’t doing it for me. Lastly, Leto, stuffed in a not at all convincing fat suit, wasn’t bad but considering I think he’s already a serial killer, that role wasn’t hard for him to slip into.

The Little Things is a modern, but still three decade-old, spin on serial killer films of the 90s and how they were able to captivate and thrill with revealing gore and clever twists, but falling short a bit in capturing the same essence and energy, leaving you mostly bored for the run of the film. For a movie that sells itself on being a psychological thriller, there wasn’t a whole lot there to be thrilled about.

5.7/10