Name: The Little Things
Genre: Drama, Crime, Thriller
Released: 2021-01-28T00:00:00+00:00
Cast: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto, Chris Bauer, Michael Hyatt

The opening shot of The Little Things (2021) lingers on a flickering neon sign, casting long shadows across the rain-slicked streets of early ’90s Los Angeles. It’s a stark, atmospheric tableau that promises a slow-burn thriller, but John Lee Hancock’s film never quite lives up to its moody opening.

The film follows Deputy Sheriff Joe “Deke” Deacon (Denzel Washington), a Kern County officer with a haunted past, as he teams up with L.A. Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) to investigate a string of murders. The premise is familiar territory, evoking echoes of Se7en and True Detective, but Hancock struggles to carve out his own path.

Where The Little Things succeeds is in its performances. Washington exudes quiet intensity, his character a well of repressed emotion that occasionally bubbles to the surface. Malek, meanwhile, delivers a nuanced portrayal of Baxter, a detective whose ambition is tempered by his inexperience. The chemistry between the two leads is palpable, their verbal sparring matches crackling with tension.

The film’s pacing, however, is a different story. Hancock opts for a deliberate, meditative approach, but the result is a narrative that often feels sluggish. Scenes drag on, dialogue exchanges meander, and the investigation itself seems to stall, leaving the viewer waiting for something—anything—to happen.

The soundtrack, composed by Thomas Newman, adds to the film’s atmospheric tone, but even here there are missteps. The score sometimes feels overly intrusive, underscoring moments that would have been more effective left to silence.

One of the film’s most intriguing aspects is its exploration of Deke’s past. Flashbacks reveal a traumatic event from his history, one that informs his present actions and adds depth to Washington’s performance. However, these revelations are dribbled out so slowly that they lose much of their impact.

The climax, when it finally arrives, is a tense, well-executed sequence that showcases Hancock’s strengths as a director. But by this point, the damage has been done. The film’s slow pace and meandering narrative have sapped much of the tension from the proceedings, leaving the viewer with a sense of anticlimax.

In the end, The Little Things is a flawed but entertaining film.