‘The Little Things’ has great acting but can’t track down a good ending

Posted on February 19, 2021

By MARK VIOLA

It was not my intention this week to write reviews for two similarly-titled films, but I honestly didn’t even make the connection between “The Map of Tiny Perfect Things” (see above) and the crime thriller, “The Little Things,” until I started writing this review a few seconds ago.

The similarity between the two titles really doesn’t have anything to do with my thoughts about either film, although similarity is actually an issue when it comes to “The Little Things” and another film whose title is completely different but whose plot shares quite a few points.

If I told you to think about a crime thriller set in Los Angeles about two cops — one a grizzled veteran and  the other and enthusiastic up-and-comer — investigating a series of gruesome murders, putting them on a path beset by obsession that ends after a long drive into the desert, what movie would you think of? I’m sure most of you would save David Fincher’s 1995 classic, “Se7en,” starring Morgan Freeman and Brad Pit (along with a third actor who I won’t spoil in case you haven’t seen it).

Well, that description would also completely fit “The Little Things,” written and directed by John Lee Hancock (“The Blind Side,” “Saving Mr. Banks”) and starring Denzel Washington (“Fences”), Rami Malek (“Bohemian Rhapsody”) and Jared Leto (“Suicide Squad”). The film is available in movie theaters, as well as on HBO Max through the rest of the month.

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