Denzel Washington‘s latest crime thriller The Little Things may have proven to be a moderate success by current standards after setting a box office record with the biggest opening weekend for an R-rated movie during the COVID-19 era, but it’s far from one of the actor’s best efforts.
Director John Lee Hancock wrote the first draft of the script in 1993, and evidently he didn’t put much more work into it over the following decades, with the narrative regularly falling into formula and familiarity. Critics have greeted it tepidly, with The Little Things currently holding a mediocre Rotten Tomatoes score of 48%, but the ending is generating plenty of discussion in regards to how ill-suited it feels in today’s social climate.
Washington’s Deke and Rami Malek’s detective Jim Baxter believe Jared Leto’s Albert Sparma is the man responsible for the murders they’ve been investigating, and he even leads Jim out into the desert to show him where the bodies are buried. It soon becomes clear that Sparma is just a weirdo who didn’t commit the crimes, but after taunting the young cop repeatedly, Jim snaps and accidentally kills him.
Deke arrives on the scene, and the two of them orchestrate a cover up, with the veteran even sending Jim a red barrette to ease his guilty conscience and make it appear as though Sparma was guilty after all. Not only that, but it’s also revealed that Deke’s colleagues helped him cover up an accidental killing of his own, which led to his initial fall from grace.
Needless to say, after what happened in regards to law enforcement in the United States last summer, some viewers were left feeling uneasy by The Little Things finishing up with the reveal that two cops had resorted to making bodies disappear and falsifying evidence to keep themselves out of trouble.
As ScreenRant notes:
With trust still a major issue with the police force among the public in certain areas, some viewers aren’t responding well to the movie’s timing. The Little Things’ reviews are already underwhelming, and it will be interesting to see if the ending’s controversial elements deter potential viewers as the movie continues streaming on HBO Max.
Tell us, though, did you have any issues with the ending of Denzel Washington‘s latest effort? Let us know down below.