As a seasoned detective with years of experience under my belt, I must admit that The Little Things left me scratching my head more than once. This film is not your typical whodunit, and that’s what makes it so intriguingly unique.
Now that “The Little Things” is available on Netflix, people are again curious about the creator of the murder mystery series depicted in John Lee Hancock’s 2021 crime movie. Hancock initially conceived the story in the ’90s, but films like “Se7en” and “Primal Fear” hit theaters before it did. The project was caught up in development limbo for nearly three decades until Denzel Washington agreed to star in 2019. Two years later, “The Little Things” was released, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it became available both in cinemas and via streaming on HBO Max. Since then, the film’s enigmatic ending has puzzled those who watched until the end.
“The Little Things”: A Crime Thriller with an Impressive Cast
What is The Little Things about?
As a gamer, I find myself drawn into the thrilling world of “The Little Things.” In this gripping narrative, I, a player, take on the role of an unnamed protagonist, initially fleeing from a relentless stalker. Later on, my character, Joe Deke Deacon – a seasoned detective who’s swapped the bustling streets of Los Angeles for the quieter pace of Kern County as a deputy sheriff – is summoned to the LA County Sheriff’s Department. There, I unearth old evidence that seems linked to a chilling recent murder.
As another corpse appears, Deke and Jimmy persist with their investigation, uncovering a chilling truth: all the deceased were sex workers, and the method of killing matches an old, unsettled case in Deke’s past that led him to leave Los Angeles originally. The probe eventually leads them to Albert Sparma (played by Leto), who skillfully manipulates the detectives during questioning. With the FBI readying to intervene, Deke and Jimmy find themselves racing against time to crack the case before it slips away from their grasp.
Despite Sparma admitting to a murder he hadn’t committed from years past, the matching fingerprint details persuade them to illegally search the suspect’s residence. Ahead of the game, Sparma tips off the police that an officer is hurt within his apartment, allowing Deke to slip away before the authorities could spot him. However, this is when things take a turn for the worse.
The Little Things mysterious ending, explained
Following a close call with law enforcement, Sparma informs Jimmy about the location where corpses are buried. Jimmy accompanies the suspected killer, with Deke trailing discretely. After reaching an unspecified desert location, Jimmy starts excavating in search of potential bodies. However, it turns out that Sparma has not committed any murders, or so he claims. Angered and infuriated by this twist, Jimmy attacks the suspect, striking him fatally with a shovel. Deke shows up later and assists Jimmy in concealing the body. At this point, “The Little Things” provides additional details about Deke’s past.
Via a flashback sequence, it’s revealed that Deke unintentionally took the life of one survivor from an unsolved case he was working on, and collaborated with his partner to conceal the truth. The weight of this act plunged Deke into a prolonged state of depression, as he is haunted by the victims of the cases he couldn’t solve. Deke tasks Jimmy with burying Sparma while he gathers all the evidence against the deceased suspect. However, upon his return, Deke finds that Jimmy has spent the entire night digging, searching for any remains to justify his actions. Deke then attempts to reason with Jimmy, hoping to persuade him to walk away from this case forever.
It seems this entire storyline revolves around Deke’s struggle with his internal conflicts. He’s plagued by a cross symbol he encounters while driving around Los Angeles, which serves as a persistent, divine emblem of unresolved sins. Despite assisting Jimmy in concealing Sparma’s murder, Deke does so to inspire the younger detective to leave behind his own wrongdoings. In the final scenes of “The Little Things,” Deke sends Jimmy a red ribbon, much like the one worn by the first victim, Ronda Rathbun (Maya Kazan). The note accompanying it reads “no angels.” Essentially, Deke is telling Jimmy that Sparma was the culprit, and he should accept this fact and move on.
Was Jared Leto’s Sparma really the murderer in The Little Things?
But was Albert Sparma really the murderer? Well, it’s hard to say. He’s definitely a creep who’s way too interested in these brutal abductions and killings. The way he messes with the detectives as if he enjoys it, is the clear work of a very disturbed individual. There’s some evidence to suggest that he might be the killer, though. For starters, he worked at the same repair company hired to help one of the victims. The same wire the company uses was even used to tie up said victims, and one of the victims was said to have been fed roast beef (Sparma himself enters a shop advertising roast beef during the stakeout). Even the FBI’s profile of the killer seems to fit Sparma’s personality.
To elaborate on this point, since the murderer is rumored to gain sexual pleasure from the killings, it’s worth mentioning that Sparma’s distinctly sensual reactions to the crime scene photos suggest at least some link to the crimes. However, these similarities should be viewed with caution. Sparma guides Jimmy to the desert not because he’s the murderer, but rather because he enjoys the spotlight it provides. He has a history of falsely confessing to murders he didn’t commit, as hinted earlier in the film, indicating a pattern in his behavior.
As a devoted fan, it’s plausible that Sparma, the intriguing character inspired by an unconventional source, might have played a role as an accomplice, albeit indirectly. Perhaps he didn’t pull the trigger himself, but if he knew the identity of the killer, he could have vicariously fulfilled his dark desires through this person. This potential suspect could be another worker at the repair shop, or someone entirely unconnected. However, his past history of meddling in police investigations hints that he may possess crucial information, even if he’s not the murderer himself.
You’ll never know the real killer in The Little Things – and that’s important
The reason “The Little Things” is effective lies in its enigma about the true murderer, which only adds to its charm. The intrigue surrounding the killer is a significant aspect of the narrative, with Deke’s personal struggle, particularly his unsolved case, taking center stage.
But although Jimmy is free to move on, Deke never can. He, like the audience, will continue to wonder about the killer. He will continue to struggle with the crime he helped cover up, and the horror that lies in not knowing the full truth. The film is called “The Little Things” because those are the things that matter in such cases, but even the little things cannot always lead one to the truth. And sometimes, these are the things that haunt us the most.
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2024-11-25 00:30