The Little Things parents guide: The Netflix hit may be like Se7en, but it’s not for 7-year-olds

The Little Things is the latest theatrical bomb salvaged by Netflix. It’s currently as of this writing tearing up the Top 10 charts on the streaming service. But is this Se7en-lite movie good for 7-year-olds? You can probably figure this one out: nope.

Released in 2021 to mixed critical reception and an icy box office, the movie stars Denzel Washington as a cop with a past, Rami Malek as a cop with a future, and Jared Leto as a creep who may be behind a series of serial killings in Los Angeles. While nowhere near as extreme as the David Fincher classic Se7en, and Jared Leto (for both better and worse) is no Kevin Spacey, at times The Little Things is a moody, evocative thriller with muddy morals.

Plus, you get to see Denzel Washington smile and laugh a bunch before things get particularly grim, and that’s always a good thing.

So with all that in mind, should this be added to your little ‘ol Netflix queue?

The Little Things Parents Guide: Explaining The R Age Rating

The Little Things is Rated R for “violent/disturbing images, language, and full nudity.” It deserves that rating, so let’s get into why.

Sex & Nudity: There’s no sex in the movie, but there are both references to sexual situations and prostitution as Washington and Malek try to figure out why the killer is murdering young girls. However, the more disturbing part is the nudity, which only comes in the form of dead young women’s bodies. For the most part, the killer positions the bodies so you can see they’re fully nude, but you don’t see any of the offending bits. However, there is one scene about two-thirds of the way through the movie where an autopsy is performed on a woman, and you see her breasts. This is, of course, not sexy, but between all these bodies presumably that’s what the MPA thought was full nudity. You also see some pictures of dead bodies that are nude, and at one point a man grabs another man’s crotch.

Violence: Other than one explicit act of violence when a man is hit with a shovel, pretty much everything is in the aftermath of the killings. Again, nothing on the level of Se7en, but you do see a lot of blood, bodies cut up, and wounds.

Language: Yeah, they’re a bunch of cops, they’re cursing all the time.

Drinking & Drugs: Not much, actually. There are a few scenes in bars, but nothing excessive. And some occasional smoking.

Overall Verdict: What Age Is The Little Things Appropriate For?

The Little Things definitely deserves its R age rating due to the nudity and subject matter. That said, while I wouldn’t sit down personally and watch this with my children if 15 and up are into the crime genre and don’t mind a little blood, this is actually surprisingly light on content given the whole “two cops tracking a serial killer” genre. Think Se7en with training wheels, and you get the gist.