The Little Things

The Little Things
Starring Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto, Chris Bauer
Directed by John Lee Hancock

The crime noir genre has been flooded in recent decades since the success of films like "The Silence of the Lambs" and "Seven," with films like "Along Came a Spider," "Alex Cross," "Kiss the Girls," and "The Bone Collector" saturating the big screen with a similar style, and pretty much all of them wound up unmemorable and forgotten. "The Little Things" is a film that unfortunately falls under that category, a film that boasts a strong cast, a compelling story, but one that's easily comparable to others and leaves a very unsatisfactory ending.

Joe Deacon (Denzel Washington) is a former L.A. cop who was haunted by a case he couldn't solve, resulting in a failed marriage, a triple bypass, and alienation from his fellow comrades. His replacement, young upstart Jim Baxter (Rami Malek), is investigating a string of unsolved murders that eerily parallel Deacon's previous case, and he tags along with Baxter in hopes that solving this case will also solve his own. Their investigation leads them to a man named Albert Sparma (Jared Leto), who appears to be the perfect suspect - or he could just be egging them on due to his eccentric nature.

Films like this often follow a traditional path: a string of unsolved murders with two cops attempting to solve it. Typically there's the old, disgruntled cop who is set in his old ways, and the young, hip, driven cop who butts heads with the older cop. In this case, "The Little Things" varies a bit in that Baxter actually appreciates and values Deacon's assistance, to the chagrin of everyone else around him, but he still has some reservations at certain moments. The pairing here of Denzel Washington and Rami Malek - two Oscar winners still in their prime - was pure genius, and it helps to elevate the film above a made-for-TV movie, but still they're not given a whole lot to work with.

Washington's Deacon is a haunted man, and you can see the haunting in Washington's eyes that he fully envelops his role. Denzel has always been an actor who provides more than what he's given, and "The Little Things" really utilizes his talents in that respect. When he's interrogating the eccentric Sparma, you can see his mind thinking more than just what he memorized in the script, but you see the gears turning in his mind as to how to handle the situation as only he could. It's really gratifying to see and the interrogation scene itself is the best part of the entire movie. Then there's moments where Deacon sees the ghosts of the girls whose murders went unsolved, and they seem very out of place in the entire context of the film, except for the fact that he makes it a point to say that cases never leave your memory, but there could've been more done in those moments to really drive that point home.

Rami Malek starts the film as a headstrong young cop who wants to prove his worth by pretty much ignoring the elder Deacon, but soon warms up to the old man and relies on him to help with his own case, shedding more of his bravado and showcasing a more reserved and tempered side. In the scenes he shares with both Washington and Leto, he serves as the middle of the emotional see-saw, with Deacon's calm, reserved nature and Sparma's boisterous, condescending attitude. You can also see echoes of Deacon's slow descent into desperation in Baxter as well, as this case turns into one like Deacon's - one that seemingly can't be solved, and threatens to eat Baxter alive.

Lately, Jared Leto can't seem to really catch a break in his performances. He tends now to overact, as was seen clearly in his abysmal portrayal of the Joker in "Suicide Squad," and here it seems that he's channeling that maniacal energy once again, providing an almost identical performance to that of the maligned Joker, only without the makeup. He's trying to be this film's Hannibal Lecter, but ends up more Ronald McDonald with his annoying, over-the-top acting.

When it comes to the story, it doesn't get any bare-bones than two cops trying to solve a murder mystery. The film is set in the 90s for no discernible reason, other for the fact that the script itself was written a long time ago but never came to fruition. Points can be given to director John Lee Hancock (who also directed vastly differing films like "Saving Mr. Banks" and "The Blind Side") for writing something original, even if it's easily comparable to the plethora of other crime noir films. It might sound like I'm beating down the film, but I did find it satisfying enough to enjoy the ride - but not one I'd pay a ticket for another go-around.

While it doesn't offer anything new to the crime noir genre, "The Little Things" does succeed in providing some rich performances, a decent soundtrack, and a satisfying - if not easily forgettable - story.

The Score: A