The Little Things: Joe Deacon’s No Angels Message Explained
The Little Things ends with Deke giving Jimmy a final message and an important token in an act layered with meaning. Here’s what it means.
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The Little Things ends on a deceptively happy note. Detective Jimmy Baxter (Rami Malek) takes a leave of absence after a case nearly destroys him. He gets a small bit of relief in the form of a note stating “No angels” and a red barrette from Joe “Deke” Deacon (Denzel Washington), as it insinuates his hard work paid off. But the movie ends by showing that Deacon was the one who purchased the barrette. So what does it all mean?
About halfway through the movie, Deke realizes Jimmy is about to head down the same dangerous path he did earlier in his career. The Little Things reveals that Joe was formerly a homicide detective that became so obsessed with one of his cases that it led to his divorce and a heart attack. He tells Jimmy that it’s not uncommon for detectives to feel an attachment to victims because it’s as though they’re the victims’ angels. But Deke sternly tells Jimmy they’re not in the angel business. Deke knows firsthand that mindset can destroy your life.
But Jimmy doesn’t listen. He becomes fixated on The Little Things’ central crime. A woman named Rhonda Rathbun disappears and Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) is the most promising suspect. Jimmy becomes utterly obsessed with proving Sparma was responsible. In a fit of rage, Jimmy later ends up accidentally killing Sparma. The murder sends Jimmy down a spiral until Deke sends him the package with the same barrette Rhonda was wearing the night of her disappearance. It was meant to be a sign to Jimmy that Sparma was their guy and the barrette was found in his home. Instead, it just proves that Deke never left the angel business; he just transferred it to his temporary partner.
Once Jimmy kills Sparma, it’s clear to Deke that Jimmy’s obsession is starting to eat him alive. A flashback in the HBO Max movie proves that Deke knows a thing or two about that. Deke had been consumed with his last murder case and accidentally shot one of the survivors because he thought it was finally his opportunity to take down the killer. That accident has never stopped haunting Deke. Yet, while Deke believes cops shouldn’t be angels for their victims, he chooses to be one for Jimmy.
Deke sees himself in Jimmy in all the worst ways and decides he needs to give Jimmy a clear conscience, even if it’s done in a slightly duplicitous way. On the surface, Deke giving Jimmy that barrette at the end of The Little Things was his way of telling Jimmy the job was done, and there was no need to continue to let it eat at him. But on a deeper level, it just showed that Deke was willing to take on more of an emotional burden. Jimmy has the life Deke would’ve if he hadn’t let that earlier crime destroy him. In Deke’s eyes, he is already too far gone — but Jimmy isn’t. Deke chooses to take on the guilt that should have been Jimmy’s. That final moment of The Little Things shows that Deke will always be someone’s angel and that even he is not completely beyond redemption.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/little-things-movie-deacon-red-barrette-no-angels-explained/