THE LITTLE THINGS – Rated R – 2 hrs. 7 mins.

THIS REVIEW is brought to you by KATHY KAISER @matineechat.com

THE LITTLE THINGS – Rated R – 2 hrs. 7 mins.

DIRECTOR/WRITER:  John Lee Hancock

STARRING:  Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto, Natalie Morales, Terry Kinney, Chris Bauer, Joris Jarsky and Michael Hyatt

From the Writer & Director John Lee Hancock, who has brought us such fabulous films as THE ROOKIE (2002) THE BLIND SIDE (2009), SAVING MR BANKS (2013) and THE HIGHWAYMEN (2019), and who alas brings another fabulous film to the big screen, complete with an incredible cast, and a storyline that will keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time too…

For this next adventure, we get the opportunity to trek into the life of Joe “Deke: Deacon (Denzel Washington), as he plays a Kern County CA Deputy Sheriff, a little weary from the life he’s leads thus far.  But when it seems a serial killer may be on the loose, he decides to “take a little time off”, so that he can join forces with LASD hot shot detective Jim Baxter (Rami Malek), who just happens to have a few missing girls on his hands…

And when Baxter finds out that Deke’s secret weapon is to find the little things that could crack open this case, they team up to fight against the menace wreaking havoc on the streets of LA. When Joe and Jim soon find that secrets from the past, have a way of rearing their ugly heads, they desperately try to assess if the local total creeper, Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) is the guy committing all these atrocities…

Now if you, like I, enjoy psychological thrillers that keep you guessing the whole way through, you are in luck with this fabulous film popping both in Theaters and on HBO MAX release, as The Little Things manages to keep you on your toes, and just when you think that you know where this storyline is headed, think again.  Hancock has managed to not only pen the perfect cat and mouse masterpiece this time around, but he also manages to pull out additional Academy Award worthy performances, from these previous Oscar winning Actors. 

Of course, seeing Washington back on screen was a delight from start to finish, as even in his more mature years, he’s still got the “it factor” that is undeniable throughout every inch of this film.  Malek is apparently expanding his repertoire of characters too, playing the hot shot Detective, and family man, who finds himself leaning on the “old guard” for his knowledge and expertise, in another very convincing performance since taking home the Oscar for 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody.  And if Leto’s “creep factor” as the Joker in 2016’s Suicide Squad got you all tingly inside, then get ready for an even creepier decent this time around, as his performance as the key serial murder suspect in this film, will make chills run down your spine!  It’s so good, that this performance causes me to question if the fun-loving, musician and lead singer of 30 Seconds to Mars is even in their anymore. 

My only wish is that Warner Brothers would have given Theaters a fighting chance with this exceptional film, releasing it only in Theaters, as our Theater industry continues to suffer from the grip this pandemic continues to unveil upon their livelihoods, as this film has the exceptional storyline, and star-studded cast to bring the masses back into the theaters.  But, since they choose a different path, all I can do is suggest that if you love seeing incredbile films in theaters like I do, please consider seeing this one at a theater near you, but if you’re still wary about going out and about in public, then you have to make plans to catch this MUST SEE FILM, streaming on HBO MAX exclusively on January 29^th.

5/5