“The Little Things” movie review

By Tara Coffey

Spooky season is right around the corner! This means it is time to put away those romantic comedies and start indulging in some hair-raising and skin crawling thriller and horror movies! I am a huge Halloween fan, and since I also love movies, this time of year is by far my favorite when it comes to what is on the big screen.

I have always loved watching classic horror movies, such as “Halloween” or “Scream” during this time of year. But psychological thrillers, such as Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho,” are by far must-sees during this haunted season.

Over the past week I had the privilege of seeing the psychological thriller “The Little Things.” This movie stars Oscar winners Denzel Washington as Deputy Sheriff Joe Deacon, Rami Malek as Detective Jim Baxter and Jared Leto as Albert Sparma.

The performances of these actors were beyond fantastic and blew me away.

Their portrayal of these characters made you as an audience feel connected to them and left audiences on the edge of their seats.

This story surrounds Washington’s character of Deacon, who is solving a crime in Los Angeles where he used to be employed as a detective before being transferred to the East Coast. As the story progresses you learn more about his character’s past and why he ended up having to transfer. John Deacon also meets Malek’s character, Baxter, who is a top detective in L.A. and they form a close relationship. Without giving too much away, you learn that these two characters have a lot in common and end up sharing similar experiences while trying to capture a serial killer that is terrorizing women in their county.

The main suspect ends up being Leto’s character, Sparma. Sparma is a very intriguing character and ends up being the embodiment of terror. Leto does an incredible job of portraying this character’s psychological dysfunction and allows the audience to feel as though they are inside the suspect’s mind. 

Leto does a phenomenal job at leaving the audience wondering just what his character is guilty of and if he really is the serial killer the detectives are after.

Both Washington and Malek leave you rooting for the good guys and loving them from start to finish, while Leto makes your skin crawl and may give you nightmares with his fantastic portrayal of a possible serial killer on the loose.

This movie has incredible twists and turns, even up to the last minute. The audience leaves this movie wondering what the truth really may end up being, and allows every person to develop their own thoughts about who may be the hero versus who is the villain. “The Little Things” ends up leaving you on the edge of your seat for the full two hours it is on screen.

If you are a thrill-seeker, crime fanatic or a person who enjoys suspenseful movies, I highly recommend “The Little Things,” directed by John Lee Hancock, streaming now on HBO Max.